Chapter 3 - SHADOWS AND SILENCE
Mia was escorted out of the hospital by security, her mind racing. She remembered feeling a brief bump in the crowded hospital lobby earlier. Someone had pickpocketed the note! Julian’s reach was far greater than she had ever imagined.
With nowhere else to go, Mia returned to the Vance estate under the cover of darkness. Officially, she was fired, but her quarters were in the detached servants' lodge. She needed to gather her belongings, but more importantly, she needed to find evidence. She had worked as Emily's personal assistant and maid for two years; she knew the routine, the security blind spots, and where the family kept their secrets.
Sneaking through the back gardens, Mia used her spare key card to enter the main mansion. The vast, vaulted halls that once felt majestic now felt like a gilded tomb.
She crept into Julian’s private study on the second floor. The room smelled of expensive whiskey and cigar smoke. Mia began searching the mahogany desk, flicking through files, checking the drawers.
Suddenly, the heavy double doors clicked. Mia gasped and dove behind the thick velvet curtains near the balcony just as the lights flicked on.
Julian walked into the room, accompanied by a tall woman dressed in an elegant red silk dress. Mia’s breath hitched—it was Victoria Vance, Emily’s younger half-sister.
"Is the doctor handled?" Victoria asked, her voice sharp and impatient.
"Thorne knows what happens to his family if he speaks," Julian said casually, pouring two glasses of scotch. "The police will do a routine sweep tomorrow, find trace elements of a rare paralytic compound, and blame Thorne for a 'medical mistake.' He takes the fall, we get the money."
Victoria laughed, a sound that made Mia’s skin crawl. "Poor Emily. She thought she was so smart transferring all of the trust fund assets into her name last month. She really thought she was going to divorce you and leave us with nothing."
"She was foolish," Julian said, taking a sip. "The paralytic dose Thorne gave her was supposed to stop her breathing entirely within an hour of the casket being sealed. If that meddling maid hadn't smashed the lid, Emily would have suffocated six feet underground by tonight, and the cremation would have destroyed all toxicological evidence."
Mia pressed her hands against her mouth to suppress a scream. It was a planned execution!
"What about the maid?" Victoria asked, leaning against the desk. "She knows too much."
Julian’s face went dark. "Don't worry about Mia. My men are already tracking her. She won't survive the night."
May you like
Mia’s heart pounded violently against her ribs. She backed away toward the open balcony doors, but her foot caught the edge of a brass floor lamp. It tipped over, crashing loudly against the hardwood floor.
Julian instantly pulled a suppressed pistol from his jacket. "Who's there?!"
