Chapter 3 - THE SCARRED HAND
The massive SUV fishtailed wildly on the wet asphalt. Evelyn was thrown against the door as the tires screamed, the heavy vehicle skidding toward the concrete median. Adrien moved with terrifying speed. He unclipped his seatbelt, lunged across the console, and grabbed the steering wheel, wrestling control from the driver. The SUV slammed into the curb, jarring everyone inside, but remained upright. Before the vehicle even fully stopped, the driver threw his door open and bolted into the pouring rain. “Stay here!” Adrien roared at the bodyguard in the back. Adrien kicked his own door open and sprinted after the fleeing man, disappearing into the dark, rain-swept alleyway between two towering office buildings. Inside the car, the children were gasping in terror. “It’s okay!” Evelyn shouted over the sound of the rain lashing against the open doors. She scrambled over the seat, pulling Sofia into her arms and pulling Nico and Luca close. “You’re safe. I’ve got you.” The bodyguard remained in the back, his weapon drawn, scanning the street with cold precision. Sofia buried her face in Evelyn’s apron, her small fingers clutching the fabric like a lifeline. Evelyn held the little girl tight, her own heart hammering wildly, while her other hand gripped the faded blue ribbon. The driver. He had worked for Adrien. But he had Lily’s ribbon. Minutes stretched into an agonizing eternity. The flashing lights of distant traffic blurred through the rain-streaked windows. Then, a figure emerged from the shadows of the alley. Adrien. He was alone. His dark coat was soaked, and his knuckles were bruised, but his face was an unreadable mask of cold fury. He climbed back into the driver’s seat, slamming the door shut. He didn't look back at the children. He didn't look at Evelyn. He threw the SUV into gear and merged aggressively back onto the road. “Did you catch him?” Evelyn asked, her voice shaking. “No,” Adrien clipped. “He had a secondary vehicle waiting three blocks down. It was coordinated.” “He knew Sofia had the ribbon,” Evelyn realized, the horror sinking in. “He knew she was going to expose him.” “His name is Vargas,” Adrien said, his voice terrifyingly calm. “He was assigned to my family’s security detail two years ago. The exact time Sofia stopped speaking.” Evelyn looked down at the little girl trembling in her arms. Sofia hadn't stopped speaking because of her mother’s death. She had stopped speaking because Vargas had threatened her. He had shown her the ribbon to prove what he was capable of. “Mr. Belandi,” Evelyn whispered. “If Vargas took my sister three years ago, and he’s been working for you for two years… who was he working for before?” Adrien’s jaw tightened. The SUV turned off the main avenue, passing through a pair of massive, wrought-iron gates that opened automatically. They drove up a long, winding driveway lined with towering oak trees, finally stopping in front of a sprawling stone mansion. “He was working for my wife,” Adrien answered softly. Evelyn froze. “Your wife?” Adrien turned the engine off. The silence in the car was absolute. “My late wife, Elena, handled the acquisition of the Grand Aurelia,” Adrien explained, his voice devoid of emotion. “She finalized the paperwork three weeks before she was killed in a hit-and-run.” The pieces were clicking together, forming a picture so ugly Evelyn wanted to close her eyes. Elena had bought the restaurant. Vargas had worked for Elena. Lily had vanished from the cellar. “Sofia,” Adrien said softly, turning around in his seat to look at his daughter. The little girl peeked out from Evelyn’s apron. “Did Mommy give you that ribbon?” Adrien asked. Sofia shook her head. Nico, sitting beside Evelyn, suddenly spoke up. His voice was remarkably steady for a nine-year-old boy who had just survived a car chase. “Mommy didn't have the ribbon, Dad,” Nico said. Adrien looked at his son. “Then who did?” “Mr. Whitmore.” Evelyn’s blood ran cold. The restaurant manager. The man who had hovered over her shoulder all evening. The man who had been so eager to dismiss her when Sofia first spoke. “Whitmore gave it to Vargas,” Nico continued, his gray eyes serious. “I saw them in the hallway the night Mommy died. Whitmore told Vargas to make sure Sofia never said a word about what she saw in the cellar.” Adrien stared at his son. The betrayal was absolute. Whitmore was Adrien’s most trusted advisor. Before Adrien could speak, a loud, heavy knock echoed against the bulletproof glass of the SUV window. Evelyn gasped, pulling the children back. Standing outside in the pouring rain, illuminated by the mansion's porch lights, was Mr. Whitmore. And he was holding a thick manila folder with Evelyn’s name printed boldly across the front.
