THE GLASS ASSASSIN: SECRETS OF TABLE 14

The rain drummed heavily against Father Thomas’s black umbrella.

I stood paralyzed in the graveyard, the heavy waterproof lockbox slipping slightly in my mud-slicked hands.

"Thomas?" I whispered, my voice breaking. "What are you doing?"

For eleven months, this man had been my only tether to the world. He had funneled the cash to my foster contacts. He had hidden my tracks. I had confessed my deepest sins to him.

And now, his hand was perfectly steady as he aimed a 9mm at my heart.

"I'm sorry, Evelyn," Father Thomas said. His voice was laced with genuine sorrow, which somehow made it infinitely worse. "But you were never supposed to dig that up."

Answer One: Thomas hadn't helped me fake my death out of religious charity. He had done it to ensure Julian’s ledger stayed buried forever.

Open Two: Who was Thomas really working for? And why was he willing to kill a mother to protect a black book?

"Julian has Mia," I pleaded, taking a cautious step forward. "He took her, Thomas. I need this ledger to buy her life back. If you shoot me, my daughter dies."

Thomas flinched. A flash of profound pain crossed his weathered face, but he didn't lower the weapon.

"Julian won't kill the girl," Thomas said softly. "Julian isn't the one calling the shots anymore."

My brow furrowed. The reversal hit me like a physical blow.

"What do you mean?" I asked, my heart hammering. "Julian is the cartel boss. He took her for leverage."

"Julian is a dead man walking," Thomas said, shaking his head. "He lost the cartel the minute he went to prison. He’s desperately trying to buy his way back in. But the people he owes... they don't want money, Evelyn. They want what’s in that box."

Thomas reached into his coat pocket with his free hand.

He pulled out an object and tossed it into the mud at my feet.

I looked down.

It was a heavy sapphire necklace. The stones caught the dim moonlight, glowing with an eerie, cold blue light.

I gasped. The air rushed from my lungs.

"No," I whispered.

That necklace had belonged to my sister, Clara.

Clara had been murdered five years ago in a brutal home invasion that Julian swore was a random robbery. It was the event that finally made me realize I had married a monster, setting me on the path to escape.

But Clara hadn't been wearing it when she died. It had been missing for half a decade.

"Where did you get this?" I demanded, my voice shaking with rage.

"From the man who killed her," Thomas said quietly.

I stared at him, my mind desperately trying to connect the fractured pieces of the nightmare.

"Julian killed her," I said. "Julian had her killed because she was trying to convince me to leave him."

"Julian ordered the hit," Thomas corrected. "But he didn't pull the trigger. The man who pulled the trigger took that necklace as a trophy. And that man is the same man who holds your daughter right now."

Answer One: Julian didn't have Mia. The assassin who killed my sister did.

Open Two: Who was the assassin? And how did Thomas know all of this?

"Who?" I screamed, the rain mixing with my tears. "Who has my daughter?!"

"I do."

A new voice cut through the darkness.

From the shadows of the church rectory, a tall figure emerged. He moved with a terrifying, predator-like silence, unaffected by the pouring rain.

He stepped into the glow of the streetlight.

It was Victor Hale.

Rourke’s head of security. The man who had supposedly killed Dean Keller an hour ago.

Victor smiled, a cold, empty expression that didn't reach his eyes. He wasn't pointing a gun at me. He didn't need to. Thomas was already doing it.

"Hello, Claire," Victor said smoothly. "Or should I say, Evelyn."

My mind spun out of control.

Victor killed my sister. Victor was working with Thomas. Victor had Mia.

"You," I breathed, pure hatred burning through my veins. "You work for Rourke."

"I work for whoever pays the highest premium," Victor chuckled, adjusting the cuffs of his expensive suit. "Rourke pays well. Julian used to pay better. When Julian ordered your sister dead, I was happy to oblige. I kept the necklace as a memento."

Victor walked closer, stopping a few feet away from me.

"But then Julian went to prison, and you stole his ledger," Victor continued. "That ledger contains the names of every corrupt cop and judge in the city. Including the ones I own. I couldn't let you hand that over to Julian, or he'd use it to reclaim his throne. And I couldn't let Rourke find it, or he'd realize I've been stealing from him for years."

Victor looked at Father Thomas.

"Good job, Father. Your debts are forgiven."

Thomas lowered the gun, looking down at his feet, his face pale with shame. Thomas was a gambling addict. Victor had owned him this entire time.

The betrayal sliced through me like a razor.

"Where is my daughter?" I demanded, gripping the lockbox so tightly my knuckles ached.

"She's safe. For now," Victor said. "Hand over the box, Evelyn. You give me the ledger, and I'll give you the address in Montauk where my men are keeping her."

I looked at the heavy waterproof box in my hands. It was my only leverage. The only thing keeping Mia alive.

If I gave it to Victor, he would kill me right here in the graveyard.

I looked down at the mud. At my sister’s sapphire necklace. At the grave bearing my name.