Chapter 6 - The Man in the Shadow
The heavy oak door leading to the alleyway clicked open with a slow, agonizing groan.
A man walked into the light of the office. He wore a tailored navy trench coat, his silver hair neatly slicked back, his pale grey eyes completely devoid of human warmth. In his right hand, he held a sleek black revolver fitted with a matte-black silencer.
"Detective Vance," Clara gasped, her breath freezing in her throat. Her uncle. The man who had managed the family trust after her father’s death.
"You shouldn't have worn the jewelry to work today, Clara," Marcus Vance said smoothly, stepping into the room and closing the door behind him. "It was meant to be discovered in your apartment tomorrow morning after your tragic suicide."
Lily shrank into the corner of the armchair, but her bright blue eyes never left Marcus's face.
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"You killed Eleanor," Clara said, her voice trembling with rising rage. "You staged the explosion, locked her away, and used me as the paper trail to liquidate the Rosewood assets!"
"Eleanor was stubborn," Marcus replied, raising the barrel of the revolver until it pointed directly at Clara’s chest. "She believed scientific discovery belonged to the public. But the Rosewood compound is worth six hundred million dollars on the private defense market. And you, my dear niece, were the perfect naive front."
