Chapter 4 - THE BASTARD AND THE HEIR
The fluorescent light above us buzzed violently, casting harsh shadows across the barrel of the gun pointed at my chest.
Thorne’s eyes were completely dead. He wasn't a man about to commit murder; he was a corporate cleaner taking out the trash.
"The Board can't control the company if a legitimate heir surfaces," Thorne said calmly, taking a step forward. "And they certainly can't have a fake heir running around creating scandal. A tragic murder-suicide in the basement. The depressed, illegitimate son and the disgruntled waitress. It writes itself."
I couldn't breathe. My mind screamed at my legs to run, but there was nowhere to go. The heavy steel door was locked behind us, and Thorne blocked the only exit.
Daniel didn’t freeze.
The revelation that his entire life was a lie—that his mother had bought him, that his father wasn't his father—had broken him for exactly ten seconds. Now, the shock crystallized into pure, unadulterated rage.
"You think you can kill me in my own house, Arthur?" Daniel roared.
With blinding speed, Daniel grabbed the heavy, metal trash can next to the bench and hurled it directly at Thorne’s head.
Thorne ducked, raising his arm to block the impact. The trash can smashed into his shoulder, throwing his aim off. The suppressed gun coughed—a sharp pfft sound—and a bullet shattered the concrete wall inches from my face, showering me in stone dust.
"Run!" Daniel shouted, grabbing my hand.
He didn’t pull me toward the locked door. He pulled me toward the back of the locker room, where a narrow, rusted metal door marked MAINTENANCE sat half-hidden behind a row of lockers.
Daniel kicked the door open with his heavy dress shoe. We plunged into the pitch-black utility corridor. The air was thick with the smell of mold and old boiler grease.
"Keep moving," Daniel hissed, pushing me forward as he slammed the metal door shut behind us and jammed a stray mop handle through the handle to lock it.
We sprinted blindly through the dark, my cheap waitress shoes slipping on the damp concrete. Behind us, I heard the heavy thud of Thorne throwing his massive weight against the door. The metal groaned. The mop handle wouldn't hold him for long.
"Where does this go?" I gasped, my lungs burning.
"The old coal chutes," Daniel replied, pulling out his phone and turning on the flashlight. "They lead out to the gardens. My father used to play hide-and-seek with me down here when I was a kid."
His voice cracked on the word father. The man who had played with him, the man who had raised him, wasn't his blood. And the woman who raised him was a monster.
We navigated the labyrinth of pipes and brick walls until we reached a slanted metal grate leading up to the night air. Daniel shoved the grate open, and we scrambled out into the freezing rain, falling onto the manicured grass of the Harrington estate.
We were completely soaked in seconds. The gala was still raging inside the brightly lit mansion above us, completely oblivious to the war happening in the shadows.
"My car is parked near the servant's entrance," I said, pointing toward the dark edge of the driveway. "It's an old Honda. They won't look for it."
We ran through the rain, diving into my rusted car. I fumbled with the keys, my hands shaking so badly I dropped them twice. Finally, the engine sputtered to life. I threw it in gear and sped down the service road, the headlights off until we cleared the estate's massive iron gates.
Once we merged onto the slick city highway, the adrenaline began to fade, leaving a crushing, terrifying reality in its wake.
"He has the key," I whispered, gripping the steering wheel. "Thorne took my mother's key."
Daniel was staring out the passenger window at the passing streetlights. His expensive tuxedo was soaked and ruined. "The key doesn't matter right now. Thorne works for the Board. That means Eleanor doesn't know the Board is trying to kill us."
"She hates me," I said. "She slapped me in front of two hundred people just because I looked like my mother. She’d probably help Thorne pull the trigger."
"No," Daniel said, turning to look at me. "Eleanor is ruthless, but she isn't a killer. She slaps people. She humiliates them. She buys babies to secure her fortune. But she didn't kill my father."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because if she killed my father to secure the company, she wouldn't have let your mother live. She knew who your mother was, Lena. That's why she reacted the way she did tonight." Daniel wiped the rain from his face. "She's terrified of your mother."
I shook my head. "My mother is in a memory care facility. She can barely remember her own name most days. How could she terrify Eleanor Harrington?"
"Where is she staying?" Daniel asked.
"Oak Creek Manor. It's a state-funded facility on the east side."
Daniel’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out. The screen was cracked from our escape, but the caller ID was clear.
It was Eleanor.
Daniel stared at the phone. He answered it, putting it on speaker so I could hear.
"Daniel?" Eleanor's voice was frantic, breathless. "Daniel, where are you? Security said you left the property."
"I know the truth, Mother," Daniel said, his voice as cold as the rain outside. "I know I'm not Richard's son. I know you bought me."
There was a long, agonizing silence on the line. When Eleanor finally spoke, she sounded like a woman whose entire world was collapsing.
"Daniel, please. You don't understand. The Harrington family was going to cast me out. Richard was leaving me for her. I had to secure the trust. I did it for us."
"You did it for the money," Daniel spat. "And now Thorne is trying to kill us. He works for the Board. They know about Lena."
"Thorne?" Eleanor gasped. "Oh my god. Daniel, listen to me. You have to get away from that girl. If Thorne knows who she is, he will stop at nothing."
"Why?" I yelled toward the phone. "Why does the Board want me dead? Just because of the inheritance?"
Eleanor paused. "You're with her?"
"Answer the question, Eleanor," Daniel demanded.
"It isn't just about the money," Eleanor whispered, her voice cracking. "It's about the necklace she wears. The silver swallow."
I touched the pendant at my throat. "My mother gave this to me."
"I know," Eleanor said, and for the first time, I heard actual tears in her voice. "Because before it belonged to your mother... it belonged to mine."
I slammed on the brakes, pulling the car onto the muddy shoulder of the highway. The tires skidded before coming to a violent halt.
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"What are you talking about?" I demanded, my heart hammering in my throat.
"Sarah Vance wasn't just Richard's mistress," Eleanor sobbed through the phone. "She's my younger sister. And she's the only one who knows where the ledger is hidden."
