Chapter 2 - A Dead Man's Account
Ethan didn't wait for the next message.
"Kill the presentation system," he ordered.
The event director rushed toward the technical booth, but the screen changed again before he reached it.
A photograph appeared.
Michael Vance stood in front of a stone building, wearing the same navy coat in which he had been buried. Beside him was a woman Ethan had not seen in years.
His mother.
Ethan stopped breathing for a moment.
Margaret Vance had died eighteen months before Michael's alleged final disappearance. The funeral had been closed-casket, the official explanation citing extensive injuries from a vehicle fire.
Yet the woman in the photograph appeared alive and uninjured.
Below the image, another message appeared.
ASK YOUR MOTHER WHAT HAPPENED AT LAKE MERCER.
Ethan felt the room tilt, though his wheelchair remained perfectly still.
"No," he whispered.
Daniel bent toward him.
"Ethan, we need to get you out of here."
"Not yet."
"Someone has compromised the ballroom network. We don't know whether this is a threat, a prank, or a deliberate attempt to destroy your company."
"It isn't a prank."
He turned toward the technical booth.
"Find out where that message originated."
At the other end of the ballroom, Brooke had seized Chad's wrist.
"Tell me what he means about the acquisition."
"Not now."
"You told me tonight was important because you were about to secure a major investment."
"I am handling it."
"You told me Ethan had lost everything."
Chad turned sharply.
"Do you want to ruin this evening by interrogating me in front of everyone?"
Brooke recoiled.
It was a small movement, but Ethan saw it. He also saw something else: Brooke wasn't merely embarrassed by his revelation. She was frightened of Chad.
Before Ethan could ask why, Isabella approached with a glass of water.
"Mr. Vance, you look like you might need this."
He accepted it.
"Thank you."
"Do you know who sent the message?"
"I have a few ideas."
She hesitated.
"I recognized the building in that photograph."
Ethan turned toward her.
"What building?"
"The old Mercer estate, outside Briarwood. My father used to work there as a security contractor."
Daniel immediately stepped closer.
"Your father worked at the Mercer estate?"
"Years ago. Before he died."
"What was his name?" Ethan asked.
"Thomas Reed."
Ethan's fingers tightened around the glass.
Thomas Reed had been Michael's personal security chief. He had vanished two weeks after Michael's death, leaving behind a resignation letter that Ethan had later learned was forged.
"You said your father died," Ethan continued carefully. "When?"
"Nine years ago. A construction accident."
"Did he ever mention Michael Vance?"
Isabella looked from Ethan to Daniel.
"He told me once that rich people could bury a truth without burying the people who knew it. I didn't understand what he meant."
Ethan lowered his glass.
"Did he leave you anything?"
Her face became guarded.
"Why are you asking?"
"Because that photograph may involve people who have been lying to me for years."
Isabella was quiet before answering.
"He left me a small brass key. He said never to give it to anyone who claimed to be helping me."
"Do you still have it?"
"Yes."
"Where?"
"At home."
A crash sounded behind them.
Chad had knocked over a champagne tower while arguing with a waiter. Dozens of guests turned toward the commotion.
Ethan barely looked at him.
Daniel leaned closer and spoke under his breath.
"Your brother's account was supposed to be inaccessible. I personally witnessed the closure."
"Then someone used a credential we never knew existed."
"Or someone inside the company reopened it."
Ethan looked at the screen again.
The photograph had disappeared. The final message remained.
LAKE MERCER. MIDNIGHT. COME ALONE.
The clock above the ballroom entrance read 9:47 p.m.
Daniel's voice dropped.
"You are not going anywhere alone."
Ethan looked at him.
"I didn't say I was going."
His phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number appeared.
IF YOU BRING YOUR LAWYER, THE WOMAN IN THE PHOTOGRAPH DIES.
Attached was a live video.
A woman sat in a dimly lit room, her face hidden by shadows. She lifted her head, revealing a small scar beneath her left eyebrow.
Ethan recognized the scar immediately.
It had come from the broken glass of his childhood home's kitchen window.
The woman was Margaret Vance.
And she was looking directly into the camera.
"Ethan," she whispered. "Whatever they tell you about your brother, don't believe them."
The video ended.
May you like
Then the phone displayed one final line.
YOU HAVE TWO HOURS.
