Chapter 2: Cracks Behind the Mansion David opened the folder. Inside were newspaper clippings, lawsuits, financial records, and photographs. At first glance, the Holloways looked untouchable. Successful. Respected. Generous. But underneath the polished image... Everything was beginning to crack. "There have been six confidential settlements in the last eight years," David explained. "Former employees." "Wrongful termination." "Workplace intimidation." "Two suspicious accidents." He slid another photograph across the table. Grant stood beside a warehouse manager who had supposedly resigned. "He didn't resign." "He disappeared after reporting accounting irregularities." Hannah frowned. "I never knew any of this." "Of course you didn't." David leaned back. "Families like theirs don't survive because they're powerful." "They survive because everyone believes someone else will stop them." I studied another page. A judge's handwritten signature caught my attention. Judge Robert Ellis. I smiled faintly. Every Friday morning... Judge Ellis ordered blueberry pancakes at booth number six. David noticed. "You know him?" "I've been serving him breakfast for sixteen years." David laughed softly. "I thought you might." Then his expression became serious again. "The Holloways think money controls every room." "They've forgotten something." "Respect travels farther than money ever will." My phone buzzed. Unknown number. Another message. 72 HOURS LEFT. A second message appeared immediately afterward. YOU STILL HAVE TIME TO APOLOGIZE. David quietly turned the phone face down. "They're trying to frighten you." "Don't let them know it worked." Outside the diner... A black Mercedes slowly rolled past. It never stopped. But everyone inside Carter's Table noticed. The war had officially begun.

5 chapters