Chapter 3 - The Gala Turned Into A TrapBlood On The MarbleThe first gunshot shattered the music.
The second shattered the chandelier.
Glass rained across the ballroom.
Adrien pushed Clara behind him.
"Down."
She hit the floor.
Guests screamed.
Security drew weapons.
Chaos exploded through the mansion.
Another shot cracked from the upper balcony.
Adrien fired once.
A shadow disappeared behind the curtain.
"Luca!"
"Already on it!"
Men scattered through the ballroom.
Adrien grabbed Clara's hand.
"Stay beside me."
They moved toward the service corridor.
A man in a waiter uniform appeared around the corner.
Adrien raised his gun.
The waiter froze.
"Boss!"
Luca arrived behind him.
"He's one of ours."
Adrien lowered the weapon.
Then he looked at Clara.
"Are you hurt?"
She shook her head.
"Are you?"
"No."
A strange relief passed through her.
Then alarms began sounding.
Not security alarms.
Bank alarms.
Adrien's phone started vibrating repeatedly.
Luca looked at his own screen.
"Boss."
"What?"
"The foundation account is being emptied."
Adrien's expression turned murderous.
"How much?"
"Three hundred thousand."
Another alert.
"Four hundred."
Another.
"Six."
Clara stared.
"The gala's donations?"
"Foundation reserves too."
Adrien looked toward the ballroom.
"We have a breach."
"No," Clara said.
He turned.
"This happened because someone needed the guests distracted."
Adrien studied her.
She pointed toward the service corridor.
"The gunshots forced security toward the ballroom. The blackout disrupted cameras. Someone was moving money while everyone was looking for the shooter."
Luca stared at her.
"She's right."
Adrien's phone vibrated again.
"Seven hundred thousand."
Clara suddenly remembered something.
"The registration office."
"What?"
"All donor checks and account authorization forms are there."
Adrien's expression sharpened.
He grabbed his coat.
"Come with me."
They reached the office.
The door was open.
Papers covered the floor.
A laptop was missing.
Clara rushed to the desk.
"That's impossible."
"What?"
"Nobody knew the donor authorization file was here."
Adrien looked at the paperwork.
One sheet remained on the desk.
A bank transfer authorization.
It carried Clara's signature.
She stared at it.
"No."
Adrien's face hardened.
"That's your signature."
"Yes, but I didn't sign this."
Luca picked up the paper.
"The account transfer was approved ten minutes ago."
Clara shook her head.
"I was downstairs."
Adrien looked at her.
"Who had access to your signature?"
"My contract. The foundation has copies."
"Who?"
"Finance. Legal. Security."
He glanced at Luca.
Then at Marco.
Marco stood in the doorway.
"You see the problem now."
Adrien looked at him.
"Explain."
Marco held up another document.
"The missing money was routed through a company registered six months ago."
"Name."
Marco's eyes moved to Clara.
"Whitmore Events LLC."
Clara went completely still.
"What?"
Marco slid the document across the desk.
Her old company.
The one she had lost.
The business her former partner had stolen from her.
The company that should no longer have been active.
Clara whispered, "That's impossible."
Adrien read the file.
"Who owns it?"
"Officially?"
Marco paused.
"Clara Whitmore."
She stared at Adrien.
"I swear to you, I didn't do this."
Adrien didn't answer.
He picked up the document again.
Then he noticed something.
A registration date.
Six months ago.
The exact week her business partner disappeared.
His eyes narrowed.
"Who filed this?"
Marco's face changed.
"I don't know."
Adrien looked at him.
"You always know."
Marco said nothing.
Then the mansion doors slammed shut.
Every lock activated at once.
Luca ran to the window.
"The gates are sealed."
Adrien's phone rang.
He answered.
A distorted voice spoke.
"You should have listened to the message."
Adrien's eyes went black.
"Who are you?"
A soft laugh came through the speaker.
"Ask Clara who her father was."
The call ended.
Clara's blood ran cold.
Adrien lowered the phone.
He looked at her.
"You're not leaving this house."
She stared at him.
"Am I a prisoner?"
"No."
His voice was deadly calm.
"You're the target."
Then someone screamed from the ballroom.
Maria.
Adrien ran.
Clara followed.
They reached the tree.
Maria was on the floor.
Beside her lay the silver angel.
Broken.
May you like
Its hollow center exposed.
And inside the angel was a tiny brass key.
Related Stories
