THE MAID’S DEADLY SECRET

The gunshot shattered the remaining silence in the ballroom.

I didn't wait to see where Margaret was aiming. I dove at Ethan, tackling him behind the heavy oak catering bar just as a bullet blew a hole in the marble floor where he had been standing.

Vanessa screamed, a high, piercing sound, and scrambled under a table.

"Stay down!" I yelled at Ethan over the ringing in my ears.

"My father!" Ethan gasped, clutching his chest. "My father is working with them?"

"He's not just working with them. He's the architect," I said, quickly assessing our surroundings.

The bar offered temporary cover, but it was made of wood. It wouldn't stop a high-caliber round for long.

I peeked over the top.

Arthur and Margaret were descending the grand staircase. Silas emerged from the shadows near the kitchen doors.

We were boxed in.

"Give us the locket, Clara," Arthur called out, his voice smooth and terrifyingly calm. "And I'll let my son live. He doesn't need to pay for David's mistakes."

"He's going to kill us both," Ethan whispered, panic setting in. "If he's willing to shoot at me..."

"He wasn't shooting at you," I said, checking my pockets. I had nothing. A housekeeping apron wasn't exactly tactical gear. "Margaret aimed for the floor. They're herding us."

"Herding us where?"

"Away from the exits."

I looked around. The only door behind us led to the family's private vault room. A room with reinforced steel walls and only one way in or out.

It was a trap.

"We can't go in there," I said.

But Silas was advancing, a suppressed pistol now in his hand. He fired twice. The bottles above our heads shattered, raining glass and expensive liquor down on us.

"Move!" I grabbed Ethan and pushed him toward the heavy steel door of the vault.

Vanessa was screaming from under her table. "Arthur! Arthur, please! I won't tell anyone!"

Arthur didn't even look at her. "Silas, silence the girl."

Silas turned his gun toward Vanessa's table.

I didn't think.

I grabbed a heavy, unbroken bottle of champagne from the floor and hurled it over the bar.

It struck Silas square in the face.

He staggered backward, his shot going wide, shattering a chandelier.

"Get in the vault!" I shoved Ethan through the open steel door and dove in after him.

I slammed the heavy door shut and spun the locking wheel just as bullets began pinging off the outside.

We were locked in.

Safe from bullets, but trapped.

The vault was dark, lit only by emergency red LED strips. It was lined with safe deposit boxes, family heirlooms, and stacks of documents.

Ethan slumped against the cold steel wall, sliding down to the floor. He put his head in his hands.

"My own father," he choked out.

I knelt beside him. "Ethan, we need to focus. Why did David have that micro-SD card? What was on it that Arthur wants so badly?"

"I don't know," Ethan said.

"Think. You said your father was desperate. Desperate for what?"

Ethan looked up, his eyes bloodshot. "Money. The company has been bleeding cash for years. I thought it was bad investments. But recently, Arthur has been moving assets offshore. He said it was for a new venture."

I pulled the locket out.

"It's not blueprints," I realized. "It's the offshore accounts. The proof of where the stolen defense money went. David found out his father was committing treason, and he stole the ledger."

Ethan stared at the locket.

"We have to destroy it," he said.

"No. This is our only leverage. If we destroy it, we have no value to them. They'll just starve us out."

Suddenly, the intercom on the wall crackled to life.

"Clara," Margaret's voice filtered through the speaker. "You were always my best student. But you were always too emotional."

I pressed the talk button. "Why, Margaret? You taught me honor. You taught me to protect people."

"Honor doesn't pay for retirement, Clara," she replied. "But I'll offer you a deal. Slide the locket under the door. I will open the vault, and you can walk away. I'll even let you take Ethan."

I looked at Ethan. He shook his head wildly.

"And Vanessa?" I asked.

Silence on the intercom.

Then, a sharp, muffled sound.

A gunshot.

Vanessa's screaming abruptly stopped.

My blood ran cold.

"Vanessa is no longer a factor," Arthur's voice came through. "Now, Clara. The locket. Or I pump the vault full of halon gas."

He wasn't bluffing. The vents in the ceiling began to hiss.

We had exactly three minutes before the oxygen was gone.