Chapter 6 - The Debt of Their Fathers
Mariana reached the mansion before the fire department finished clearing the archive.
Smoke stained the white hallway walls.
Sprinkler water covered the marble floor.
The cabinets that had contained decades of Whitmore documents stood open and empty.
Andrew walked through the wreckage behind her.
“My mother would never destroy family records.”
“She framed me for theft,” Mariana replied.
“You no longer know what she would do.”
Andrew had no answer.
Brenda waited in the entrance hall with two suitcases.
Security officers had prevented her from leaving.
She looked furious.
“You cannot detain me.”
Mariana stopped in front of her.
“You are free to leave.”
Brenda reached for the suitcases.
“The jewelry stays.”
“It belongs to me.”
“It was purchased through my accounts.”
Mariana nodded toward the guards.
They opened Brenda’s suitcases.
Diamonds, watches, cash, and designer accessories filled the compartments.
Brenda’s face hardened.
“Andrew gave me those.”
Andrew stared at the collection.
“I gave you one bracelet.”
Brenda said nothing.
Mariana noticed a silver flash beneath a silk dress.
She removed a small key.
It matched the locks on the missing archive cabinets.
“Where did you get this?”
“I have never seen it.”
“It was in your suitcase.”
“Someone planted it.”
Andrew laughed without humor.
“Now you know how Mariana felt.”
Brenda glared at him.
Mariana handed the key to security.
“Let her leave.”
Andrew stepped forward.
“She knows something.”
“She will talk when the person paying her stops paying.”
Brenda lifted her chin.
“You think you understand everything.”
“I understand that you planted a necklace.”
“You do not understand why.”
“Then explain it.”
Brenda looked toward the security cameras.
Fear crossed her face.
“I cannot.”
“You mean you will not.”
“I mean people are watching.”
Mariana followed her gaze.
The nearest camera’s red indicator light was off.
Someone had disabled it.
Brenda moved close enough to whisper.
“Margaret did not choose me for Andrew.”
“She chose me for you.”
Mariana’s expression remained still.
“What does that mean?”
Before Brenda could answer, a car horn sounded outside.
She pulled away.
“I have said too much.”
Brenda left without her stolen jewelry.
Andrew moved to follow her.
Mariana stopped him.
“She wants us to chase her.”
“What if she is in danger?”
“She helped put me in danger.”
“That does not mean we let someone kill her.”
Mariana studied him.
Hours earlier, Andrew had ordered her to kneel.
Now he was arguing for the safety of his mistress.
Part of her hated him for it.
Another part recognized the first trace of the man she had once loved.
“Security will follow her,” Mariana said.
“They will not approach unless necessary.”
Andrew nodded.
A servant appeared at the end of the hallway.
Elias had worked for the Whitmore family for twenty-six years.
He carried a metal box covered with soot.
“I removed this before the fire reached the west cabinet.”
Andrew opened it.
Inside was a handwritten ledger.
Richard Whitmore’s name appeared on the first page.
Alejandro’s appeared on the second.
The entries documented secret payments made from Escalante accounts.
Some went to Whitmore Global.
Others went to medical laboratories.
One payment had been made eight years earlier.
It was sent to the hospital where Mariana’s mother died.
The recipient was listed only as M.W.
Andrew stared at the initials.
“Margaret Whitmore.”
Mariana turned the page.
A second entry appeared beneath the payment.
EMERALD PROTOCOL ACTIVATED.
BENEFICIARY MUST BE REMOVED BEFORE TRANSFER.
Andrew looked at Mariana.
“My mother was paid before your mother died.”
Mariana closed the ledger.
The sound of a vehicle came from the courtyard.
A security officer entered.
“We found Mrs. Whitmore’s car.”
“Where?” Andrew asked.
“Abandoned near the river.”
“Was she inside?”
“No.”
The officer handed Mariana a sealed envelope found on the driver’s seat.
Mariana opened it.
Inside was a photograph of her mother in the hospital.
Margaret stood beside the bed.
Daniel Reeves stood behind her.
May you like
On the back, someone had written five words.
ASK MARGARET WHO GAVE THE INJECTION.
