Chapter 2 - THE INTERROGATION ROOM
The silence in the ballroom was absolute, broken only by the sharp intake of Adrian’s breath. He stepped over the spilled champagne, his eyes never leaving Claire’s face. Vanessa, recovering her composure, reached out to grab his arm. "Adrian, she’s a violent lunatic. Security is handling it."
Adrian didn’t even look at his fiancée. He gently but firmly detached Vanessa’s hand from his sleeve. "Margaret," he said, his voice a low baritone that commanded the entire room without yelling. "Cancel the rest of the evening. Clear the ballroom."
"Adrian!" Vanessa shrieked, the mask of the wounded socialite completely shattering. "This is our engagement party! You are embarrassing my family!"
"Your family," Adrian finally turned to her, his eyes cold and dark, "is not my priority right now." He looked back at Claire, extending a hand not as a billionaire to a maid, but as an equal. "Come with me. Now."
He led her through the labyrinth of the hotel’s service corridors, past gaping kitchen staff and frantic event planners, until they reached the executive suite. The door clicked shut, sealing them off from the chaos. Adrian poured two glasses of water, handing one to Claire. Her hands were still shaking, the adrenaline of the Fifth Gate leaving her muscles weak.
"Eight years ago," Adrian began, pacing the length of the Persian rug, "my father’s company was negotiating a merger with Sterling Development. I discovered discrepancies. Massive ones. Shell companies, illegal evictions, money laundering. I was going to blow the whistle." He stopped and looked at her. "I was in the waterfront parking garage. A man attacked me. I would have died if a stranger hadn't stepped in and thrown the attacker against a pillar using the exact move you just used on Vanessa."
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Claire’s breath hitched. "The police told my mother it was a random mugging. They said my father fought back against a thief."
"It wasn't a mugging," Adrian said softly. "It was an assassination attempt ordered by the Sterlings. Your father saved my life, Claire. And the Sterlings killed him to cover their tracks."
