Chapter 3 - THE WHISPER IN THE DARK
The hallway light cut a sharp, yellow stripe across the wooden floor.
A silhouette filled the doorway.
It was not Damian.
It was Viviana.
She wore a silk robe that rustled like dry leaves in the wind.
Her blonde hair fell loosely over her shoulders, framing a face devoid of its usual warm smile.
"You’re awake, Lara," Viviana said smoothly.
Her voice carried a chilling lack of emotion.
Lara did not lower the heavy lamp.
"What do you want, Miss Sloane?" Lara asked, her voice steady despite her racing heart.
Viviana stepped inside, closing the door softly behind her.
The lock turned with a sharp metallic snap.
"I want to make sure we understand each other," Viviana replied, walking toward the center of the room.
She stopped just out of striking distance, her eyes gleaming in the dim light.
"You are a nobody from a failing background," Viviana continued, her tone conversational.
"Damian hired you out of pity because your mother worked for his family."
"That doesn't give you the right to turn his daughter against me."
"I didn't turn anyone against anyone," Lara countered, keeping her grip firm on the lamp base. "Grace spoke the truth."
Viviana let out a low, mocking laugh.
"Truth is a very flexible concept in this house, Lara."
"Ask yourself: who does Damian trust more?"
"A maid with a disgraced family name, or the woman wearing his ring?"
Lara’s jaw tightened. "He will find out what you're doing to his accounts."
Viviana’s smile vanished instantly.
Her eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.
"Let him look," Viviana whispered, stepping closer. "Every financial trail leads directly back to your predecessor."
"And she disappeared very conveniently last month, didn't she?"
Lara felt the blood drain from her face.
"What did you do to Sarah?" Lara demanded.
Viviana tilted her head, feigning innocence.
"Sarah packed her bags and left in the middle of the night."
"People do that when they steal from the Hollis family."
"And people who ask too many questions tend to follow the exact same path."
Viviana reached out and touched the edge of Lara’s desk.
"Pack your things, Lara."
"You are leaving tomorrow morning."
"Or else?" Lara challenged, refusing to back down.
"Or else Grace pays the price for your stubbornness," Viviana hissed, her mask dropping completely.
The door unlocked with a swift twist of Viviana’s hand.
She turned and paused in the doorway.
"Don't test me, Lara. You have no idea how deep my roots go in this city."
The door clicked shut.
Lara exhaled a breath she didn't know she was holding.
She dropped the lamp back onto the nightstand.
Her hands were shaking violently.
She couldn't leave.
If she left, Grace would be left entirely at Viviana’s mercy.
And Sarah was still missing.
Lara knew she had to find proof before morning.
She waited twenty minutes until the mansion fell into absolute silence.
Creeping out of her room, she moved like a ghost down the carpeted hallway.
Her destination was Damian’s private home office on the third floor.
The room where the master safe and financial archives were kept.
The stairs creaked slightly beneath her soft steps.
She reached the heavy mahogany double doors of the office.
The handle was unlocked.
That was strange. Damian always locked his study.
Lara pushed the door open just a fraction.
A faint blue glow illuminated the dark room.
May you like
Someone was sitting at Damian’s mahogany desk.
And it wasn't Damian.
