Chapter 12 - The Shadow at the Threshold
Claire didn't hesitate. She immediately summoned Eleanor Cross and Alexander Thorne to the secure library of the Vance estate.
Julian Vance examined the photograph under a magnifying lamp, his weathered face darkening with rage and ancient grief. “Victor Blackwood… I thought we buried him in the Swiss courts in 2004. If he pulled strings to get Ethan released on an extradition technicality, he’s after more than just revenge against Mercer Capital.”
“He’s after the master vault of Aura Design,” Alexander Thorne said gravely, pointing to the background of the photograph. “Look at the background behind Blackwood. That’s the St. Moritz private vault facility. The only thing stored there is your father’s original patent archives—the blue-energy structural patents that Aura Tower is currently built upon.”
Suddenly, the security alarms across the Vance estate blared in a high-pitched, deafening wail.
Red emergency lights flashed along the mahogany corridors. The estate’s perimeter sensors signaled a breach at the eastern gate.
Alexander drew a concealed weapon from beneath his jacket, stepping protectively in front of Claire. “Security detail! Code Black! Lock down the safe room!”
The library’s reinforced oak doors shuddered violently under a heavy blow.
Then, the estate’s power cut out completely, plunging the grand room into pitch-black darkness, save for the pale moonlight filtering through the French windows.
From the darkness beyond the shattered doors came the slow, rhythmic click of leather dress shoes stepping across the broken splintered wood.
May you like
A familiar voice echoed through the shadows, smooth, devoid of the pathetic desperation Ethan had shown in the ballroom—now cold, altered, and terrifyingly composed.
“Did you miss me, Claire?” Ethan’s voice purred from the dark threshold. “You gave me twenty-four hours to disappear. Now, it’s my turn to give you a choice.”
