Chapter 9 - THE NIGHT THE LIGHTS WENT OUT|
The first warning came at 9:17 p.m.
A black sedan had been parked outside my apartment building for nearly an hour. The investigator Arthur had assigned to watch the property noticed it, photographed the license plate, and called me.
“Don't go downstairs,” he said.
I moved away from the window.
“Do you know who owns it?”
“I'm checking. Stay inside.”
Five minutes later, the building's power went out.
The hallway lights died.
My phone flashed once, then went dark.
I stood in the kitchen, listening.
A heavy footstep sounded beyond my door.
Then another.
Someone tried the handle.
I backed away.
A man's voice came through the wood.
“Miss Bennett? Building maintenance.”
I did not answer.
The handle moved again.
Then my phone lit up with an emergency call from Arthur.
I answered without speaking.
“Evelyn, are you safe?”
“Someone is outside my door.”
“Do not open it. Police are on their way.”
The footsteps stopped.
A moment later, I heard a crash at the far end of the hallway.
Then running.
I remained still until the investigator reached my apartment with two uniformed officers.
They found the side entrance forced open and a small device attached to the building's electrical panel.
The police took photographs.
No one was arrested that night.
But the message was clear.
Someone knew I had discovered the transfers.
The following morning, Arthur arranged for me to move into a secure residence owned by the trust.
I hated the idea of hiding.
“I refuse to spend the rest of my life looking over my shoulder,” I told him.
“You don't have to. But you do need to remain alive long enough to prove what happened.”
I sat at the kitchen table, staring at the coffee I hadn't touched.
“Could Nathaniel have arranged this?”
“We don't have evidence.”
“Do you believe he did?”
Arthur took a long breath.
“I believe he has been protecting someone. I don't yet know whether that person is his mother, a former executive, or someone else.”
That afternoon, Vanessa arrived at the residence with a small envelope.
She looked exhausted.
“Nathaniel knows I spoke to you,” she said.
“How?”
“He found the photograph I sent.”
“Did he hurt you?”
“No. But he took my phone and told me I was making a terrible mistake.”
She handed me the envelope.
Inside was a photograph of an old ledger.
Across the top were the words:
ORIGINAL CAPITAL — WHITMORE TRUST
Vanessa whispered, “I found it in his father's private archive.”
I looked at the date.
The ledger had been created before Ashford Global existed.
May you like
And one entry had been marked in red.
UNAUTHORIZED TRANSFER — $42,000,000.
