Chapter 5 - THE SETUP
“Put that down, Evelyn,” Daniel ordered. His voice didn't rise in volume, but the sheer, lethal authority behind it was enough to make the air in the room feel instantly heavier.
Evelyn didn't lower the heavy iron iron poker. She stepped fully into the moonlight, her perfectly pinned hair completely undisturbed. She didn't look like a thief caught in a lie; she looked like a monarch defending her throne.
“You’ve grown soft, Daniel,” Evelyn said, her eyes darting between him and Natalie. “I raised you when your own mother couldn't handle the life your father built. I taught you how to be ruthless. How to survive. And now, you let these... these girls come into this house and make your son weak.”
“You stole from me,” Daniel said, stepping deliberately in front of Natalie, shielding her with his broad shoulders.
“I took what was owed for protecting the Brooks legacy!” Evelyn hissed. “Maria was poisoning the boy’s mind. Filling his head with fairytales and soft morals. He is the heir to a syndicate, Daniel! He needs to learn that people leave. That trust is a liability.”
“He is five years old!” Natalie cried out from behind Daniel.
Evelyn sneered. “And you are just the latest infection. I warned you to leave. Now, you’ll leave in handcuffs.”
Daniel frowned. “What are you talking about?”
From the pocket of her black dress, Evelyn pulled out a small, velvet jewelry box. She tossed it onto the desk. It landed next to the ledger with a soft thud.
“I called the police ten minutes ago,” Evelyn said calmly. “I reported a theft. A very precious heirloom.”
Daniel reached out and popped the velvet box open. It was empty.
“My mother’s rosary,” Daniel said, his voice going dangerously quiet. It was a priceless antique of solid gold and black diamonds, the only thing he had left of the woman who birthed him.
“It seems the new maid couldn't resist the temptation,” Evelyn said smoothly. “The police will find it stashed in her belongings. With her criminal record from her youth, who do you think they will believe? The esteemed house manager of the Brooks estate, or a desperate girl looking for a quick payday?”
Natalie’s blood ran cold. She did have a juvenile record—a desperate shoplifting charge from when she was sixteen, trying to feed her little sister. Evelyn had done her homework.
“You planted it in my room,” Natalie breathed, panic finally beginning to edge into her voice.
“Prove it,” Evelyn challenged, a triumphant smirk playing on her lips.
“She doesn't have to.”
The small, quiet voice came from the doorway.
Everyone froze. Standing in the threshold, clutching his painted wooden bird in one hand and something glittering in the other, was Lucas.
He looked at Evelyn, his small face completely devoid of the paralyzing fear that had gripped him earlier. He walked straight past the woman who had terrorized him, moving directly to his father’s side.
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He opened his hand. Resting on his tiny, pale palm was the heavy gold and black diamond rosary.
“Evelyn didn't put it in Natalie’s room,” Lucas said softly, his dark eyes locking onto his father’s. “She tried to. But I took it from her pocket when she brought my supper.”
