Chapter 6 - THE WOMAN IN RED
Rebecca reached the service corridor before security closed the ballroom doors.
I saw only a flash of red fabric disappearing beyond the wall.
Samuel ran after her.
Helena followed.
I handed Noah to my mother.
“Claire,” Mom said, “don’t.”
“She has the documents.”
“Then let security handle it.”
“They don’t know what they’re looking for.”
Mom tightened her hold around Noah.
“You do?”
“The Hale heir consent.”
Her eyes widened.
I ran.
The service corridor twisted behind the ballroom through kitchens, storage rooms, and loading areas.
Hotel workers stepped aside as I passed.
Ahead, a metal door slammed.
I pushed through it and entered the underground parking garage.
Rebecca stood beside a black sedan.
Samuel blocked the driver’s door.
Helena approached from the opposite side.
Rebecca clutched the folder against her chest.
“You have no authority to detain me,” she said.
Helena held up her phone.
“The documents in your possession belong to Meridian Technical Preservation Trust.”
“They were given to me by the chief executive.”
“The former chief executive.”
Rebecca smiled.
“That transfer won’t survive an hour.”
Samuel moved closer.
“Give us the folder.”
She looked at him.
“You must be Samuel.”
His face changed.
“You know me?”
“Victor spoke about you.”
“Victor is dead.”
“Not before he recorded a great deal.”
Samuel went still.
Rebecca opened the rear door of the sedan.
I reached the car before she could enter.
“What does Adrian need my signature for?”
She turned toward me.
For the first time, her confidence slipped.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
“I asked you a question.”
“You should ask your mother.”
“My mother says the trust cannot be broken.”
“Your mother is wrong.”
Samuel shook his head.
“The heir consent only applies after Margaret’s death.”
Rebecca’s smile returned.
“Exactly.”
The garage seemed to grow colder.
I heard the distant hum of ventilation fans.
A car alarm sounded on another level.
I looked at Rebecca.
“What are you saying?”
She tilted her head.
“Adrian did not marry you because he knew who you were. That part was luck.”
Samuel stepped forward.
“Stop talking.”
“But once Lenora discovered the connection, everything changed.”
My mouth went dry.
“When did she discover it?”
“Two years ago.”
Adrian and I had been married for four.
Noah had been born six weeks earlier.
I thought of the message on Adrian’s phone.
You promised she would be gone before the board vote.
“Gone,” I said. “What did that mean?”
Rebecca glanced toward the garage entrance.
Then she threw the folder.
Pages scattered across the concrete.
Helena moved instinctively to catch them.
Rebecca pulled a small canister from her purse and sprayed Samuel in the face.
He cried out and stumbled backward.
I rushed toward him.
Rebecca climbed into the sedan.
The engine started.
Helena struck the window with her hand.
“Stop.”
The car accelerated.
I grabbed Samuel’s coat and pulled him away from the tires.
The sedan sped toward the exit ramp.
Two security vehicles attempted to block it, but Rebecca swerved between them and disappeared.
Samuel coughed against his sleeve.
His eyes were red and streaming.
“Are you hurt?” I asked.
“Pepper spray.”
Helena gathered the scattered pages.
“Most of these are copies.”
I found the black folder near the rear tire.
It was empty.
“She kept the originals.”
Samuel wiped his eyes.
“What originals?”
Helena held up one page.
At the top was the name of the trust.
Beneath it was a title I had never seen.
SUCCESSOR BENEFICIARY TERMINATION CONSENT
The signature line was blank.
My name appeared beneath it.
I read the first paragraph.
If signed, it would transfer all successor rights from me and any biological descendants to a private acquisition entity.
“Noah,” I whispered.
Helena nodded grimly.
“If you signed this, neither you nor your son could reclaim the patents.”
“Why would I sign it?”
Samuel leaned against the car.
“Because Adrian planned to include it inside your postnatal estate documents.”
I thought of the papers Adrian had placed on our kitchen counter four days earlier.
Medical directives.
Guardianship updates.
Insurance forms.
He had told me his attorney needed them before the christening.
I had not signed.
A wave of nausea rose through me.
Helena’s phone rang.
She answered.
Her face changed as she listened.
“What happened?” I asked.
She ended the call.
“Adrian is gone.”
“What do you mean gone?”
“He left the ballroom during the confusion.”
“My mother has Noah.”
“The protective order is active. Hotel security is with them.”
Samuel stared toward the exit ramp.
“Rebecca didn’t escape alone.”
A terrible understanding moved through me.
The sedan’s rear windows had been dark.
We had never seen who was driving.
My phone vibrated.
A message from Adrian appeared.
YOU TOOK MY COMPANY.
NOW I’M TAKING SOMETHING YOU LOVE.
Attached was a photograph.
It showed my mother sitting in the ballroom with Noah in her arms.
The image had been taken from across the room only seconds earlier.
May you like
Behind her, reflected in a silver serving tray, stood a man wearing a hotel uniform.
His hand was inside his jacket.
