Chapter 6 - SHADOWS AND SMOKE
The heavy silence in the locked foyer was broken only by Lily’s quiet, terrified breathing.
Julian stopped his charge, his eyes locked on the weapon in Thomas’s waistband. He was fast, but he couldn't risk a stray bullet hitting his father or his newfound niece.
Richard Sterling, however, did not back down. The old lion stood tall, his grief hardening into pure steel. "You think you can murder us in our own home, Thomas? The security detail patrols the perimeter every fifteen minutes."
"I sent them home, Richard," Thomas chuckled, resting his hand casually on the grip of the gun. "I am the head of legal and operations, remember? I told them you requested absolute privacy tonight."
Julian’s mind raced. He needed a distraction. He needed an opening.
He looked down at Lily. She was trembling, but her eyes were fixed on Thomas’s left hand as it gripped the banister.
"He has it," Lily whispered, her voice surprisingly loud in the quiet room.
Thomas frowned. "Has what, you little brat?"
"The bracelet," Lily said, pointing at Thomas’s wrist. "Mommy's lucky bracelet. She said the beads were made of special fire glass."
Julian squinted. Peeking out from beneath the cuff of Thomas’s silk robe was a cheap, woven string bracelet with brightly colored glass beads. It looked entirely out of place on the billionaire lawyer.
Why would Thomas keep a cheap trinket from the niece he despised?
Unless it wasn't a trinket.
"Eleanor was building a case against you," Julian said, realization dawning on him. "Those aren't just glass beads. They're micro-drives. Flash drives. She gathered evidence of your embezzlement and the Vance plagiarism, didn't she?"
Thomas’s polite smile vanished. His face twisted into an ugly, panicked snarl. He instinctively covered his wrist.
That one second of distraction was all Richard needed.
With a roar that defied his seventy years, Richard swung his heavy, silver-headed cane like a baseball bat. It struck the wooden banister right next to Thomas’s hand, shattering the wood and sending splinters flying into Thomas’s face.
Thomas shouted in pain, stumbling backward up the stairs and drawing the gun.
"Run, Julian!" Richard barked, positioning his massive frame between Thomas and the children. "Get her to the study! Use the panic room!"
Julian didn't hesitate. He scooped Lily up and sprinted down the hallway toward the west wing. Behind him, he heard a muffled pop of the silenced pistol, followed by the sound of breaking glass.
Panic surged through him, but he couldn't look back. He burst into his father's oak-paneled study, slamming the heavy mahogany door shut and locking it.
He ran to the bookshelf, pulling the hidden lever disguised as a leather-bound encyclopedia. The bookcase swung open, revealing the steel-reinforced door of the panic room.
Julian set Lily down and punched the code into the keypad. The light turned green.
"Get in, sweetheart. Hide under the desk," Julian commanded gently.
"What about the grumpy man?" Lily asked, tears streaming down her face.
"I'm going back for him," Julian promised.
But as Julian turned to close the panic room door, his eyes fell on his father’s massive mahogany desk. Sitting perfectly in the center of the leather blotter was a fresh, sealed envelope.
May you like
It hadn't been there this morning.
Written on the envelope, in Eleanor’s unmistakable handwriting, were two words: For Julian.
