Chapter 5 - The Mastermind RevealedClaire lashed out, wrenching her arm away from the gloved hand and stumbling backward against the brick wall. “Stay away from me! Who are you? Where is Daniel?”
The woman inside the SUV stepped out into the rain, holding a large black umbrella. She wore an expensive charcoal-gray trench coat, her silver-streaked hair tied back in a flawless chignon. Her sharp green eyes scanned the alley with absolute calm.
“My name is Elena Rostova,” the woman said smoothly, keeping her hands visible. “And Daniel Han is currently ensuring that Richard Vance’s little hit squad won't be following us any time soon.”
Claire gripped the leather ledger tighter against her chest, her knuckles white. “You’re working with them. This is a trap!”
“If I were working with Margaret and Richard, you would already be dead, and the ledger would be back in their safe,” Elena replied, her tone firm yet laced with genuine empathy. She stepped closer, lowering her voice. “Claire, your father didn't die of a heart attack. He was murdered. And I was his closest partner in the corporate intelligence division that helped him build Bennett Restoration into what it truly was.”
The world seemed to tilt on its axis. Claire stared at the older woman, the rain mixing with the hot tears streaming down her face. “My father... was murdered?”
“Poisoned slowly over six months,” Elena said grimly. “Margaret wanted control of the company’s hidden assets, and Vance wanted the municipal contracts. They thought by selling you off to a street vagrant for a hundred dollars, they could legally sever your ties to the estate before liquidating the remaining shares.”
“A vagrant?” Claire echoed, remembering Daniel’s scars and tactical precision. “Daniel isn’t just a homeless man, is he?”
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Elena offered a faint, cryptic smile. “Daniel Han is a former master-sergeant of the international black-ops intelligence unit your father hired to protect you two years ago, when he first discovered Margaret’s plot. He has been living on the streets in disguise, watching over you every single day, waiting for the exact moment your stepmother made her move.”
Before Claire could absorb the staggering truth, the screech of tires echoed at the end of the alley. Twin headlights cut through the rain as a sleek black sedan barreled around the corner, heading straight toward them.
