Chapter 4 - The Midnight Audit and the Attorney’s Warning
The hot bath had washed away the grime of the warehouse, but sleep refused to claim me.
I sat wrapped in a plush silk robe by the massive arched window of the east suite, staring out at the turbulent waves crashing against the cliffs far below.
My mind raced.
Priscilla. Devlin. Marlo.
They had traded me like livestock.
They had signed the papers without a second thought.
Suddenly, a soft knock echoed at the double doors of my suite.
“Come in,” I said quietly.
Mrs. Higgins entered carrying a silver tray with a steaming mug of chamomile tea and a small envelope.
“Mr. Falcone asked me to bring this up to you, Miss Whitlock,” Mrs. Higgins said gently, setting the tray on the bedside table. “He also asked me to give you this.”
She handed me the white envelope.
I opened it with trembling fingers.
Inside was a single handwritten note in bold, sharp ink:
Henry Voss tried calling your phone three times while you were asleep. He is waiting outside the gates. Drink your tea. We ride at dawn.
I stared at the note, my heart skipping a beat.
Henry Voss.
My father’s old attorney.
The man who had called me just before Priscilla summoned me to that fateful dinner party.
Without hesitating, I grabbed my phone from the nightstand.
It was fully charged.
I dialed Henry Voss’s direct line.
It rang twice before an old, breathless voice answered.
“Delaney? Thank God!” Henry exclaimed, coughing slightly on the other end. “Are you safe? Where are you?”
“I’m safe, Henry,” I whispered, keeping my eyes on the heavy oak doors. “I’m... at an estate on the harbor. Who brought me here? How do you know about this place?”
“Listen to me very carefully, Delaney,” Henry said, his voice dropping to an urgent rattle. “Your father didn't die in a car accident. His brakes were cut. Priscilla orchestrated it to get her hands on the multi-million-dollar trust your father set up under your name.”
My breath caught in my chest.
“My father... was murdered?”
“Yes!” Henry cried out. “And Tobias Grant was the middleman who laundered the money to cover it up. But listen to me, Delaney—the man who bought you tonight... that is Augustus Falcone. He is the most dangerous criminal overlord in Baltimore. If you stay with him, you are trading one cage for another!”
“He saved me, Henry,” I whispered, looking out at the dark ocean.
“He didn't save you out of kindness, child!” Henry warned frantically. “Men like Falcone don't rescue people; they collect them. You must run—!”
CRACK.
A sharp, violent sound echoed through the phone line.
Followed by a sickening thud.
“Henry?” I screamed, jumping up from the chair. “Henry, are you there?!”
Silence.
Then, a low, smooth voice spoke through the receiver on the other end.
“He dropped his phone, Miss Whitlock.”
It wasn't Henry.
It was one of Falcone’s enforcers.
“He’s bleeding,” the voice continued calmly. “Mr. Falcone ordered us to secure him for questioning. He’s safe in the perimeter vehicle. Do not worry.”
The line went dead with a sharp click.
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I dropped the phone onto the carpet, my hands shaking uncontrollably as the terrifying reality of my new life crashed down around me.
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