Chapter 7 - THE ORIGINAL WAREHOUSE
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The old Breakwater warehouse stood near the industrial waterfront, where trucks rumbled along the roads and the smell of salt mixed with diesel.
Nora had not been there in years.
She remembered the first office: a narrow room above the loading dock, two folding chairs, and a coffee machine that leaked onto the floor.
Camden had kissed her in that room after they won their first major contract.
He had told her they were going to change the industry.
Nora had believed him.
Now she stood outside the building with Holly and Marcus, looking at a place that held the beginning of both her marriage and her betrayal.
“Are you sure this is the right entrance?” Marcus asked.
Nora nodded.
“There's a service corridor behind the loading bay. The old storage room is below it.”
They entered through a side door using a key Bianca had provided.
The building was quiet.
Marcus checked the corridor before allowing Nora inside.
At the end of the hallway, a metal door stood behind a stack of discarded pallets.
The key turned.
Inside was a small room filled with filing cabinets, old equipment, and boxes covered in dust.
Nora found the cabinet marked with the year Breakwater had been incorporated.
She pulled out a folder.
The original lease.
The first bank statements.
The partnership agreement.
And a document bearing her signature.
This time, it was real.
Nora stared at the page.
Her name appeared beside Camden's.
The original agreement gave her equal ownership.
Holly photographed every page.
Marcus opened another drawer.
“There's more.”
He removed a second folder.
It contained correspondence between Camden and Gideon Rourke.
One letter was dated three months before Nora and Camden married.
Once the marriage is complete, the trust interest will remain within our control. The girl knows nothing of her inheritance. Keep it that way.
Nora felt her stomach twist.
Another letter was addressed to Camden.
Eleanor's daughter must never learn that the trust was used to finance the original operation. If she discovers the connection, she may have grounds to challenge every transfer.
Nora looked at Holly.
“That's why they wanted me.”
Holly nodded.
“They wanted access to the trust and control over your identity.”
Marcus found a small envelope at the bottom of the drawer.
Inside was a photograph of a woman standing beside a car.
Nora recognized her immediately.
Her mother.
But the photograph was dated six years after the day she disappeared.
Nora's hands trembled.
“She was alive.”
Marcus examined the back.
A location had been written in faded ink.
A private care facility in New Hampshire.
Holly looked at Nora.
“We need to verify this before we go anywhere.”
Nora nodded.
Then a noise came from the hallway.
Footsteps.
Marcus turned off the light.
Someone stopped outside the door.
A man's voice spoke.
“She's here.”
Nora's blood ran cold.
The door handle began to turn.
Marcus motioned for them to move behind the filing cabinets.
The door opened.
A figure stepped inside.
It was Arthur Pike.
He looked directly toward the cabinet where Nora was hiding.
May you like
Then he smiled.
“Mrs. Rourke,” he said. “Your husband would like you to come home.”
