Chapter 4 - SHADOWS IN THE ALLEY
Sophia froze, positioning herself between the stranger and the hallway where Mateo was coughing.
"Get out of my home," Sophia demanded, her voice low and steady.
The man chuckled, adjusting his silk tie. "Technically, Lane Properties bought this building twenty minutes ago. You're trespassing. But I came with a message from Victoria." He tossed a manila envelope onto her cheap coffee table. "Your father wasn't a hero, Sophia. He was a thief. And if you ever go near Alexander Ashford again, Victoria will make sure everyone knows it. Starting with child services taking your brother."
Sophia didn't blink. She moved faster than the man could register. In two steps, she was inside his guard. She grabbed his lapels, shifted her hips, and used his own startled momentum to throw him hard against the drywall.
He gasped, the wind knocked out of him completely.
"Tell Victoria," Sophia whispered, her forearm pressing gently but firmly against his collarbone, "that Miguel Reyes taught me how to fight. And he taught me how to win."
She released him. The man scrambled to his feet and fled down the stairs, terrified of the maid who moved like a ghost.
Sophia rushed into the bathroom, grabbed Mateo’s spare inhaler, and ran back out to the stairwell. She helped her brother take two deep puffs. Color slowly returned to his cheeks.
"Are we in trouble, Soph?" Mateo asked, his small hand gripping hers tightly.
"No, buddy," she lied softly. "We're just going to take a little trip."
She brought him inside, grabbed the manila envelope, and opened it under the flickering kitchen light.
Inside were bank statements from six years ago. Her father's name was on them. There were monthly deposits of ten thousand dollars. The sender was an offshore shell company.
Her father hadn't been poor. He had been hiding money. Why?
Before she could process it, headlights swept across her living room window. A sleek black SUV idled on the street below.
A knock came at her broken door.
It was Alexander Ashford. He looked entirely out of place in the grimy hallway, still wearing his tuxedo trousers and a white shirt unbuttoned at the collar. Standing behind him was the elderly man from the gala, leaning on his cane.
"I tried to stop Victoria's people, but she moves fast," Alexander said, looking at the broken doorframe. "I brought my personal physician. He's downstairs waiting in the car for your brother."
Sophia hesitated, her protective instincts warring with Mateo's need for a safe place.
"Why are you doing this?" Sophia asked, clutching the bank statements.
"Because we owe him," the old man spoke up. He stepped into the light. "I am Elias Vance. I was your father’s teacher. And I am Alexander’s godfather."
Sophia’s mind spun. "You knew my father?"
Elias nodded slowly. "Miguel didn't just stumble upon a mugging that night, Sophia. He was assigned to protect Alexander. Your father was the lead security contractor for the Ashford family. He was investigating a threat against Alex's life."
"A threat from who?" Sophia demanded.
Alexander looked down, his jaw tightening. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a worn, folded photograph. He handed it to Sophia.
May you like
It was a picture of her father, looking sharp in a dark suit, standing next to another man. Behind them was a younger, smiling Victoria Lane.
"The man who ordered the hit on me," Alexander said softly, "was Victoria's father. Your dad died to keep that a secret. And tonight, Victoria realized you have the power to expose everything."
