Chapter 5 - The Man Who Put Me Inside Dominic's Home
Dominic pushed me behind the closet wall.
“Stay down.”
Footsteps crossed the dark penthouse.
Slow.
Measured.
Not someone searching.
Someone who knew exactly where to go.
Dominic drew his gun.
I hated that weapon.
I also hated how relieved I was that he had it.
The emergency lights flickered on.
A man appeared near the hallway.
Mateo.
Dominic lowered the weapon.
“What happened?”
“Building power was cut remotely.”
“Vivienne?”
“Probably.”
Mateo looked at me.
“You okay?”
“Yes.”
Dominic picked up the flash drive.
We moved into the office.
Mateo used an isolated laptop.
The drive contained hundreds of files.
Bank transfers.
Shipping manifests.
Audio recordings.
Photographs.
My father had collected everything.
But one folder was newer.
Dominic opened it.
Vivienne's name appeared repeatedly.
She hadn't merely inherited her father's criminal network.
She had rebuilt it.
Judges.
Police officials.
Corporate executives.
Blackmail.
Bribery.
Extortion.
Dominic leaned back.
“This ends tonight.”
Mateo nodded.
“Federal contact?”
“Only Alvarez.”
My father entered.
“Agent Alvarez is still clean?”
Dominic looked at him.
“You know her?”
“I recruited her source fifteen years ago.”
I stared.
“Can everyone stop casually revealing twenty-year secrets?”
Nobody laughed.
I wasn't joking.
Dominic contacted Special Agent Sofia Alvarez.
Two hours later, she entered the penthouse with three federal agents.
No uniforms.
No spectacle.
She reviewed the files.
“This is enough.”
“To arrest Vivienne?”
“If we can authenticate it.”
Daniel nodded.
“I can.”
Alvarez looked at him.
“You've been legally dead since 1999.”
“It's been inconvenient.”
Even Dominic almost smiled.
The plan was simple.
That meant I immediately distrusted it.
Daniel would contact Vivienne.
Offer the original evidence.
Federal agents would monitor the exchange.
Dominic wanted me nowhere near it.
I agreed.
Then Vivienne called me directly.
“Grace.”
My skin crawled.
“How did you get my number?”
“You really need to stop asking questions whose answers are obvious.”
“What do you want?”
“You.”
Dominic shook his head.
I put the phone on speaker.
Vivienne continued.
“Your father won't cooperate unless you're involved.”
“He's cooperating with the FBI.”
Silence.
Dominic looked at me as if I had lost my mind.
Maybe I had.
Vivienne laughed.
“Good.”
The word frightened everyone.
“Why is that good?”
“Because now I know where you all are.”
A sharp sound came from the hallway.
Alvarez turned.
Smoke poured beneath the service door.
“Move!”
The fire alarm screamed.
Sprinklers activated.
Dominic grabbed my hand.
Agents moved toward the exits.
The elevator was disabled.
We headed for the emergency stairs.
Then gunfire erupted below.
Not close.
But close enough.
“Back!”
Dominic pulled me into the corridor.
This wasn't an attack to kill everyone.
It was an attack to divide us.
And it worked.
Smoke thickened.
I lost sight of my father.
“Dad!”
It was the first time I had called him that.
Daniel turned.
Our eyes met.
Then a fire door slammed between us.
“Grace!”
I reached for it.
Locked.
Dominic pulled me away.
“We'll circle around.”
A masked man emerged through the smoke.
Dominic moved before I understood what was happening.
He knocked the weapon aside.
They crashed against the wall.
I backed away.
The attacker reached for another gun.
I grabbed the nearest object.
A fire extinguisher.
I swung.
It connected with his arm.
The gun fell.
Dominic looked at me.
“Remind me never to complain about your cleaning equipment.”
“Not the time.”
We ran.
Mateo found us on the thirty-eighth floor.
“The attack team is retreating.”
“Daniel?”
“With Alvarez.”
Relief.
“Vivienne?”
“Gone.”
Of course.
By sunrise, federal agents controlled the building.
The attack became national news.
Dominic's name appeared everywhere.
So did mine.
MAID CAUGHT IN MERCER PENTHOUSE ATTACK.
I hated the headline.
Dominic hated it more.
He had three newspapers remove my photograph before noon.
“How?”
I asked.
“Lawyers.”
“That answer is becoming annoying.”
“You prefer crime-lord magic?”
I smiled despite myself.
Then my mother arrived.
She looked fragile.
But alive.
I hugged her until she complained she couldn't breathe.
“Sorry.”
“Don't be. Do it again.”
I did.
Dad stood several feet away.
Mom looked at him.
Then at me.
There were decades between them.
Love.
Anger.
Regret.
Maybe all three.
“We have a lot to talk about,” she said.
“Yes.”
“I lied to you.”
“Yes.”
“I thought I was protecting you.”
“I know.”
“That doesn't make it right.”
“No.”
She squeezed my hand.
“I know that too.”
For the first time, I believed we might eventually survive the truth.
Not erase it.
Survive it.
Dominic entered.
Mom studied him.
“You're Victor's son.”
“Yes.”
“You have his eyes.”
“So I've been told.”
“He saved my life.”
Dominic went still.
I looked at her.
“What?”
“The night of the fire.”
She looked toward Dad.
“Victor Mercer didn't kill Daniel.”
“I know.”
“No.”
Her expression changed.
“You don't know everything.”
Dad frowned.
“Eleanor.”
“You never knew either.”
She sat.
“Victor came to our apartment the afternoon before the fire.”
Dad stared at her.
“What?”
“He knew someone planned to kill you.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“You were already gone.”
She looked at Dominic.
“Victor gave me money, documents, and a place to disappear. He said if anything happened, I was to take Grace and never use Daniel's contacts.”
Dominic looked shaken.
“My father never mentioned you.”
“He couldn't.”
“Why?”
“Because Charles Bennett had someone inside Victor's own family.”
Silence.
“Who?” Dominic asked.
Mom hesitated.
Then looked toward the doorway.
Vivienne's voice came from behind us.
“She's talking about my mother.”
Everyone turned.
Vivienne stood in the open doorway.
No burgundy dress now.
Black coat.
Hair pulled back.
A gun in her hand.
Pointed at my mother.
Dominic moved slightly.
“Don't.”
Vivienne smiled.
“Now we're finally having the conversation my family waited twenty-seven years to finish.”
May you like
She closed the door behind her.
And locked it.
