The Midnight Frost / Chapter 5 / 10

Chapter 5 - Bypassing the KingThe Hale estate was a massive, gated mansion nestled on a hill overlooking the frozen valley. It was surrounded by a high wrought-iron fence and security cameras that swept the perimeter at regular intervals.

At 2:00 p.m., wearing a dark winter coat and carrying an old wicker basket filled with baked goods, I walked up to the side security gate. I had parked my old station wagon a mile down the road, blending into the snowy landscape.

I pressed the call button on the security box.

"Yes?" a gruff voice answered.

"Hello," I said, putting on my best frail, trembling old woman voice. "It’s Margaret Vale. I’m Claire's mother. I brought some warm cherry pies for the security team. Beckett told me everyone was working so hard searching for my daughter, and I wanted to help."

There was a long pause. The guard on the other end of the line was likely checking his orders. Beckett had told them to look out for Claire, but he had never told them to bar her quiet, harmless mother.

The gate clicked open. "Come on up, Mrs. Vale."

I walked up the long, winding driveway, my boots crunching on the packed snow. The main house was quiet, the heavy drapes drawn. I walked up to the side entrance, where a young security guard in a black uniform was waiting for me.

"Thank you, ma'am," the guard said, taking the heavy wicker basket from my hands. "We appreciate the food. It’s a cold day out there."

"Oh, it's the least I could do," I smiled warmly, looking past him into the kitchen. "Is Beckett inside? I wanted to see if there was any news."

"No, ma'am. He's out with the sheriff's team near the lake. They think she might have headed toward the highway."

"Oh, dear," I sighed, wiping a fake tear from my eye. "I left my purse in the living room the last time I visited. Would you mind if I ran inside to grab it? My medication is in there."

The guard looked hesitant, but his eyes dropped to the warm, smelling pies in the basket. "Sure, Mrs. Vale. But make it quick. I’m not supposed to let anyone wander around the house alone."

"Of course, dear. Thank you so much."

I slipped inside the house, the heavy door closing behind me. The interior was silent, smelling of expensive wood polish and leather. As soon as the guard turned his back, my frail posture vanished. I moved with silent, practiced speed up the grand staircase toward Beckett's private study on the second floor.

The study door was locked with a heavy electronic keypad. I pulled a small, high-tech decrypter from my pocket—a device Richard’s team had sent me via courier earlier that morning. I pressed it against the keypad, and within fifteen seconds, the light turned green with a soft, satisfying click.

I stepped inside, closing the door behind me. The room was spacious, dominated by a massive mahogany desk and a large oil painting of the Hale family on the wall.

I walked over to the painting, sliding it aside to reveal the heavy steel safe embedded in the concrete wall. I pulled out my professional lockpicks and a electronic stethoscope, pressing the cold metal against the safe's dial.

This was old-school security. Beckett’s father was a traditionalist, and he had installed an analog combination lock as a backup to the digital keycard system. For a master investigator like me, it was child's play.

I turned the dial slowly, listening to the soft, rhythmic clicks of the tumblers falling into place.

Click. Left thirty-two.

Click. Right fourteen.

Click. Left seventy-six.

With a heavy metallic groan, the safe door swung open.

Inside sat stack of offshore bank documents, a black leather ledger, and the encrypted flash drive Claire had described. I pulled out my digital camera, taking rapid, high-resolution photographs of every page of the ledger, before pocketing the flash drive and the ledger itself.