Chapter 5 - THE DEMOLITION
I didn’t hesitate.
I took off my server apron, tossed it onto an empty chair, and grabbed my jacket from the service closet.
“Leo, you’re coming with us,” I said, holding my hand out to my son.
I wasn’t leaving him alone in this hotel. Not tonight.
Arthur was already at the door, Madison right behind him.
“Someone call the police and keep Robert here,” Arthur ordered his guests.
We rushed to the elevator and descended to the lobby.
The valet brought Arthur’s black town car around.
Arthur handed me the keys.
“You drive, Michael. Faster than you’ve ever driven in your life.”
I got behind the wheel. Arthur took the passenger seat. Madison and Leo climbed into the back.
The tires squealed as I pulled out onto the wet Columbus streets.
“The demolition wasn’t supposed to happen until tomorrow,” Madison said, her voice shaking as she stared out the window. “Why is he doing it tonight?”
Arthur stared at the silver teardrop locket in his hand.
“Because Christopher didn’t just steal Nora’s money. He’s trying to bury something in that building.”
“What could be in the building?” I asked, keeping my eyes on the road.
“I don’t know,” Arthur replied. “But Nora never took this locket off. If Elena Rostova had it, it means Christopher gave it to her. And if Christopher had it…”
He couldn’t finish the sentence.
The implication hung heavily in the dark car.
Christopher had been at the scene of Nora’s fatal car accident eleven years ago.
Before he even met Madison.
My grip tightened on the steering wheel.
We tore through the city, running two red lights.
As we approached the East End, the neighborhood changed. The streetlights grew dimmer, the buildings older.
Then, we saw the dust.
A thick cloud of concrete dust plumed into the night sky, illuminated by harsh, yellow construction spotlights.
“No!” Madison screamed.
I slammed on the brakes, throwing the car into park just outside the chain-link construction fence.
Nora’s House stood in the center of the lot.
It was a two-story brick building covered in ivy. It had always looked like a fortress of safety for the kids in this neighborhood.
Now, a massive yellow excavator was positioned near the east wall.
Its steel claw was raised, hovering just feet above the roof of Nora’s old office.
A woman in a hard hat and a high-visibility jacket stood near the heavy machinery, holding a clipboard.
Elena Rostova.
Arthur didn’t wait for me to open his door.
The seventy-nine-year-old man threw his door open and sprinted across the uneven dirt lot with the speed of a man half his age.
“STOP!” Arthur roared.
Elena turned, her eyes widening in surprise.
She raised a hand, signaling the operator.
The excavator’s engine idled, lowering the claw slightly but not striking the building.
Arthur reached her, breathing heavily.
“Get this machine off my property,” he demanded.
Elena recovered her composure.
“Mr. Bennett. You don’t have jurisdiction here anymore. Juniper Holdings authorized the demolition.”
“Juniper Holdings committed wire fraud three hours ago,” I said, stepping up beside Arthur.
I held up my phone.
“The police are already at the Grand Wellington. They have Robert the attorney in custody. If that claw touches this brick, you’re going down for destroying a crime scene.”
Elena looked at my phone, then at Arthur’s furious face.
She wasn’t paid enough to go to prison.
She keyed her walkie-talkie. “Shut it down, Marcus.”
The excavator engine died.
Silence fell over the lot.
“Where is Christopher?” Madison demanded, running up behind us, holding Leo’s hand.
“He called me twenty minutes ago,” Elena said defensively. “Told me to accelerate the teardown of the east wing. He’s on his way here now to make sure it gets done.”
Arthur turned to the building.
The east wing.
Nora’s old office.
“Michael,” Arthur said. “We need to get inside before he arrives.”
Elena tried to block us. “The interior is unsafe. The structural beams have already been compromised.”
“Move,” Arthur said.
We pushed past her and entered through the heavy blue front doors of Nora’s House.
The inside was a mess.
Drywall had been smashed. Children’s lockers were ripped from the walls, their colorful name tags trampled under heavy work boots.
Leo squeezed my hand. I could feel him trembling.
This place had been his sanctuary. Seeing it destroyed was breaking his heart.
We navigated the debris-filled hallway using the flashlights on our phones.
We reached Nora’s office at the end of the east wing.
The door had been kicked in.
Inside, the carpet was torn up, exposing the old floorboards.
Arthur stepped carefully into the room.
He swept his flashlight across the space.
“What are we looking for?” I asked.
“If Chris ordered this specific wing destroyed first, he’s hiding something physical,” Madison said.
Arthur knelt near the spot where Nora’s desk used to sit.
He brushed some plaster dust away from the baseboard.
“Help me lift this,” Arthur said, pointing to a loose floorboard.
I jammed my fingers under the wood and pulled.
It groaned, then snapped upward.
Hidden in the shallow cavity between the joists was a small, wooden music box.
It was covered in dust, but the painted daisies on the lid were still vibrant.
Arthur pulled it out.
His hands shook as he lifted the lid.
The tiny ballerina inside didn’t spin, and no music played.
Instead, the box was stuffed with folded, yellowing documents.
Arthur pulled them out and unfolded them under the beam of my flashlight.
He stared at the papers.
He couldn't speak.
“Grandpa?” Madison whispered. “What is it?”
Arthur slowly handed the papers to his granddaughter.
“They’re deeds,” Arthur whispered.
Madison read the top page.
Her face drained of all color.
“I don’t understand,” she said, her voice shaking. “These are the property deeds for the Juniper Development sites. The luxury apartments.”
“Yes,” Arthur said.
“But they’re dated twelve years ago,” Madison cried. “And they aren’t in Christopher’s name.”
May you like
She looked up, her eyes wide with terror.
“They’re in my mother’s name. Mom owned the land Christopher is building on.”
