Chapter 2 - The Empty Bakery Box
The box contained no cake.
Inside was a single silver serving knife wrapped in blue tissue paper.
The knife was identical to the one Nora and Grant had used at their wedding.
Their original knife had disappeared six months after the ceremony.
Nora remembered searching the penthouse before their first anniversary. Evelyn had blamed a careless caterer. Grant had ordered a replacement and told Nora not to worry about it.
Now the missing knife had returned.
Paige moved closer to the box.
“That is not funny.”
“Did you know the knife was missing?” Nora asked.
“No.”
Evelyn reached for it.
Nora closed the lid before she could touch it.
“We are calling security.”
Evelyn’s mouth tightened.
“This is probably a publicity stunt.”
“Organized by whom?”
“A journalist. An activist. One of the hundreds of people who believe wealth makes us responsible for every disappointment in their lives.”
“The person knew about the knife.”
“Former staff members knew.”
“The person also knew about Saturday’s cake.”
Paige looked toward her mother.
“You said the bakery was Maribelle.”
“I said no such thing.”
“Yes, you did. At lunch.”
Evelyn’s calm slipped for the first time.
“I suggested Maribelle because Nora used them for the foundation gala.”
Nora studied her.
“Who ordered the anniversary cake?”
“The event planner.”
“What is her name?”
Evelyn did not answer.
Paige folded her arms.
“Mother?”
“Malcolm’s office hired the planner.”
The same lawyer who had prepared the petition questioning Nora’s mental capacity was organizing a celebration inside her home.
Nora called the building’s head of security.
Within minutes, the service corridor was locked down and surveillance footage was pulled from the previous hour.
The cameras showed nothing unusual.
At 6:14 p.m., the space outside the service door was empty.
At 6:15, the white box appeared.
There was no person carrying it.
No elevator opening.
No interruption in the video.
One frame showed bare marble.
The next showed the box.
The security director replayed the footage three times.
“It may have been edited,” he said.
“From inside your system?” Nora asked.
His silence was an answer.
Grant called as the technicians examined the network.
Nora moved into the library and shut the door behind her.
“Someone left our wedding knife outside the service entrance.”
Grant breathed in sharply.
“Where is it now?”
“With security.”
“Do not let the police take it.”
Nora pressed the phone closer.
“Why?”
“Because it belongs to us.”
“That is not an answer.”
“I will handle it when I return.”
“You will not be here until Saturday evening.”
“I am trying to change the flight.”
“Who is threatening us?”
“No one.”
“Someone entered our security system, delivered a stolen object and instructed me to eat the first slice of a cake that has not been ordered.”
Grant said nothing.
Nora closed her eyes.
“Did you know about Malcolm’s incapacity petition?”
“What petition?”
“Do not lie to me.”
“I am not lying.”
“He tried to restrict my voting rights.”
“That makes no sense.”
“It makes perfect sense if the Halcyon vote is closer than you told me.”
Grant’s voice became quieter.
“How did you learn about that?”
“My name is on the shareholder registry. I am allowed to know when someone tries to remove me from it.”
“Nora, listen carefully. Do not sign anything until I come home.”
“I was not planning to.”
“Not for Evelyn. Not for Paige. Not for Malcolm. Not even if the document appears to protect your shares.”
Her anger cooled into unease.
“Why would a document appear to protect them?”
“I cannot explain on the phone.”
“Then explain in person.”
“I am trying.”
A knock sounded on the library door.
Rosa entered carrying Grant’s replacement anniversary knife.
It had been stored in a locked cabinet.
Except the cabinet was now empty.
Rosa held the knife by the handle.
“This was in the kitchen an hour ago,” she said. “Now the original knife is in its place.”
Nora turned toward the security box.
Someone had switched them.
Grant heard Rosa through the phone.
“Get out of the penthouse,” he said.
Nora looked toward the door.
“What?”
“Take Rosa and leave now.”
A faint metallic click came from the ceiling.
Nora raised her eyes.
The air-conditioning vent above the desk had opened.
A narrow strip of paper floated down and landed near her hand.
On it was a photograph.
Grant stood outside a Chicago hotel with an unfamiliar woman in a red coat.
The date stamped in the corner was from the previous night.
May you like
On the back, someone had written:
HE ALREADY CHOSE WHO SURVIVES.
