Chapter 16 - THE SILENT ALLYTen minutes was all Arthur had. Ten minutes to save his closest friend, protect his company, and figure out a way to strike back at an enemy who held all the cards.
Arthur’s fingers hovered over the keyboard. The surrender document required his digital signature and biometric authentication.
"Dad?"
A small, quiet voice broke through the tension in the study.
Arthur spun around. Standing by the half-open door was Leo, rubbing his sleepy eyes, wearing his favorite dinosaur pajamas. The boy was looking directly at his father with an expression of intense maturity that completely defied his seven years.
"Leo? What are you doing out of bed?" Arthur asked quickly, rushing over to shield his son from the glowing monitor and the terrifying live feed of the warehouse. "Go back to your room, buddy. Everything is fine."
"It's not fine, Dad," Leo said softly, walking past Arthur without a hint of fear. He stepped right up to the desk, staring at the countdown timer on the screen. "I heard them talking. The bad man with the loud voice. He's the one who gave Victoria the keys to the service hatch."
Arthur froze. "Leo, how do you know that?"
"Because when I was locked behind the wall," Leo said calmly, his small fingers reaching out and tapping the edge of the keyboard, "I didn't just record what Victoria said. On Tuesdays, when she forgot to lock her phone on the hallway table outside my vent, I used a wire coat hanger to pull it close enough to listen to her voice calls."
Arthur’s breath caught in his throat. "You listened to her phone calls?"
"She called Julian every single week," Leo nodded, his eyes shining with fierce intelligence. "She complained that Julian was hiding a backup phone somewhere in the mansion. A secure satellite phone connected directly to his offshore bank accounts and his prison escape contacts."
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Arthur stared at his son in stunned amazement. "A backup phone... in this house?"
"It's behind the grandfather clock in the main hallway," Leo said instantly. "The bottom panel has a false magnetic latch. Julian hid it there five years ago right before he went to trial."
