Chapter 4 - THE FIRE SHE NEVER MENTIONED
Vanessa lunged for the photograph.
Daniel pulled it away.
“Who is he?”
“My cousin.”
“You kiss your cousin?”
She froze.
I took the picture from Daniel. The man wore a dark coat and a gold ring shaped like a snake. Behind them stood a boarded-up building with smoke stains above the windows.
“Ask her about the fire,” I read aloud.
Vanessa’s face hardened. “Someone is blackmailing me.”
“About what?” Daniel asked.
She looked around the room, searching for an exit that did not exist.
Finally, she said, “Six years ago, I worked for a luxury event company in Atlanta. There was a warehouse fire. The owner blamed me because I had closed that night.”
“Were people hurt?” I asked.
“One guard had smoke inhalation.”
Daniel studied her. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because it was not my fault.”
Grant entered with a tablet. “We found the men’s vehicle registration. One is connected to Cole Strategic Holdings.”
Daniel looked at Vanessa. “Cole?”
“My brother’s company.”
“You told me your brother was a teacher in Arizona.”
“He used to be.”
Rosa crossed her arms. “The man in the photograph is not her brother. His name is Marcus Vale. He came here twice.”
Vanessa’s eyes flashed. “You went through my things.”
“No,” Rosa said. “You shouted his name while arguing in the kitchen.”
Daniel sat down as if his legs had stopped working.
I wanted to protect him. Every instinct in me demanded that I end the conversation, remove Vanessa, and lock every door.
But truth delivered in pieces can be easier to deny.
So I let it continue.
“Daniel,” I said, “check the trust access log.”
He opened his laptop. His fingers shook over the keys. The family trust held Whitmore House, part of our investment company, and the endowment that funded hospitals and shelters through my foundation.
He signed in.
A red warning filled the screen.
UNAUTHORIZED DOCUMENT REQUESTS DETECTED.
Someone had attempted to download trust certificates, property records, and Daniel’s digital signature file.
The requests had come from inside Whitmore House.
From his office computer.
Daniel turned slowly.
“You said you never entered this office without me.”
Vanessa lifted her chin. “I didn’t.”
Rosa pointed at the photograph. “He did.”
A sharp alarm sounded from the basement.
Grant checked his radio. “Fire suppression system. Archive room.”
We ran down the back stairs.
Smoke curled under the archive door.
Grant unlocked it while another guard brought an extinguisher. Inside, a metal trash bin burned beside shelves filled with financial records.
The flames were small, but the message was clear.
Someone had tried to destroy paper evidence.
On the floor lay a half-burned folder with Vanessa’s name on the tab.
Daniel reached for it.
May you like
A figure slammed into him from behind and raced toward the service exit.
The Housekeeper Test
