Chapter 3 - The Deception in the Leather Case
With shaking fingers, I picked up the small, worn Bible from the hospital bed. Lauren watched me with wide, innocent eyes as I gently flipped through the delicate pages. Tucked neatly behind the back cover was a yellowed leather pouch, hidden inside a hollowed-out section of the binding.
I pulled out a thick stack of folded legal documents bearing an official state seal dated thirty years ago.
Mrs. Higgins leaned over, gasping. "Is that...?"
"The original land deed to the entire 4th Street district," I whispered, skimming through the dense legal jargon.
The truth hit me like a freight train. Decades ago, Mary’s grandfather had purchased the swampy, industrial plot of land that eventually became the heart of Chicago's financial district. The city had illegally leased it out under a temporary clause that expired this very year. Mary wasn't just a poor woman living in a rundown apartment—she was the rightful, legal owner of the multi-billion-dollar downtown sector my company was attempting to seize.
She had never told me when we were young because she didn't care about money. But when my firm tried to demolish her home and displace hundreds of impoverished families, she fought back using the law.
And Victoria knew it.
"Arthur," Mrs. Higgins said, her voice trembling. "Two men in dark suits just entered the floor. They're looking into every room."
I snapped the Bible shut and looked out the small glass window of the ICU door. Walking down the hallway were two of Victoria’s personal security operatives—men I recognized from my own firm's payroll. They were searching for Lauren. They wanted the paper, and they wanted to silence the child who carried the key to the estate.
"Marcus," I called my driver on my earpiece immediately. "Bring the SUV around to the emergency dock. We have five seconds."
"Sir, the police—" the officer started, but I grabbed him by the tactical vest, staring straight into his eyes with raw authority.
"My board of directors is trying to murder this child and her mother to steal a three-billion-dollar estate," I snarled. "You escort us out right now, or I swear on my life, your chief of police will have your badge by midnight."
The officer hesitated for a split second before drawing his weapon. "Follow me. Out the service stairs."
I scooped Lauren into my arms, wrapping my coat around her, while Mrs. Higgins followed close behind. As we burst through the heavy stairwell doors, I heard shouting behind us—the sound of boot heels sprinting down the tiled corridor.
We made it into the rain-slicked alleyway just as Marcus pulled the black SUV up to the curb. I threw the door open, shoving Mrs. Higgins inside, and slid into the leather backseat with Lauren tightly in my lap.
"Where to, Mr. Vance?" Marcus yelled over the roar of the engine.
May you like
I looked down at the tiny girl trembling against my chest, holding her father's old photograph. The press conference was happening right now at Vance Global Headquarters. Victoria was about to sign the final demolition permits live on national television.
"Drive to Headquarters," I commanded, my eyes burning with a vengeance. "It's time to crash a party."
