Chapter 6 - THE SABOTAGE
Underneath the silver dome wasn't a beautifully plated steak.
It was a raw, rotting piece of meat, covered in what looked like mold and crawling with live maggots.
Several journalists gagged and stumbled backward. The health inspector covered his mouth in horror.
"This is an outrage!" the inspector shouted, pointing a shaking finger at Robert. "You serve this in your establishment?!"
Robert was panicking. His perfect, controlled demeanor shattered.
"No! No, this is a setup!" Robert stammered, stepping away from the table. He pointed at me. "He did this! Daniel Mercer! The owner! He’s unhinged. He broke into the kitchen to sabotage this dinner!"
The journalists immediately turned their cameras on me.
"Mr. Mercer, is this true?" a reporter yelled over the chaos. "Are you serving contaminated food?"
I squeezed Sophie’s hand. She was looking at the rotting meat, her face pale, but she stood tall beside me.
"No," I said calmly, looking directly at the cameras. "This meat didn't come from my kitchen."
"It's on your table!" Robert yelled, his face turning red. "Arrest him!"
I reached into my faded work jacket and pulled out the manila folder I had taken from the office.
"I spent the afternoon at a construction site in Columbus," I said, my voice echoing in the grand room. "But before that, I stopped by the county clerk's office."
Robert froze.
"I was curious why the property taxes on six of my restaurants were suddenly being routed to a different P.O. Box," I continued.
I pulled out the deeds and threw them onto the table, right next to the rotting meat.
"This man, Robert Ellis, forged my signature to transfer the land under my restaurants to a shell company. He planned to tank the company's stock tonight with a fake health scandal, bankrupt the Mercer Group, and sell the real estate out from under us to a rival buyer."
The room fell dead silent. The only sound was the rapid clicking of camera shutters.
The health inspector looked at the documents, then at Robert.
"Is this true, Ellis?" the inspector demanded.
Robert’s eyes darted toward the exit. He was trapped.
Then, he started to laugh.
It was a cold, hollow sound.
"You think you’ve won, Daniel?" Robert sneered. He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a small, black velvet box.
He threw it on the table.
The box bounced, popping open.
Inside was a delicate, silver locket.
My heart completely stopped.
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It was Elena’s locket. The one she was wearing the night she died. The one that had gone missing from the hospital.
"I didn't forge the signatures, Daniel," Robert said, a wicked smile spreading across his face. "She did."
