Chapter 5 - Caught in the Crosshairs
Panic spiked through my veins with the force of a lightning strike. My mind raced in hyper-drive, scrambling for a lie, an excuse, anything to explain why I was kneeling by the executive desk in the private library after being explicitly ordered to stay in the nursery.
I shoved the flash drive deep into the pocket of my jeans and frantically folded the note, sliding it right beside the drive just as heavy, measured footsteps began marching across the hardwood floor toward the library entrance.
"Elena," Marcus called out again, his voice closer this time, dripping with a chilling, artificial patience that sent a fresh wave of terror cascading down my spine. "I asked you a question."
I scrambled to my feet, my knees trembling so hard I nearly lost my balance on the Persian rug. I darted away from the desk just as the heavy mahogany doors swung fully open, bathing the room in the harsh light of the hallway chandelier.
Marcus stood in the threshold, his tall frame blocking the exit. His shirtsleeves were still rolled up, but his posture had shifted from the controlled employer of an hour ago into something predatory. His dark eyes swept the room, instantly locking onto me standing ten feet away from the desk, my chest heaving and my face undoubtedly pale as death.
"I thought I was quite clear," Marcus said softly, his voice dropping into a menacing register as he took a slow, deliberate step into the room. "I told you to stay in the nursery with Leo."
"I... I heard a noise, Mr. Vance," I stammered, my voice cracking under the crushing weight of his gaze. I forced myself to take a step forward, keeping my hands jammed deep into my pockets to hide the fact that they were shaking uncontrollably around the flash drive and the incriminating note. "I thought Leo might have woken up or that something was wrong downstairs, so I came down to check."
Marcus stopped five feet away from me. The silence in the cavernous library grew suffocating, thick with unspoken accusations. He didn't look convinced. In fact, his eyes narrowed into dangerous slits, scanning my face as if trying to dissect every micro-expression, every drop of sweat on my forehead.
"A noise," he repeated slowly, tasting the word on his tongue like a bad vintage. "Strange. The upper hallways are completely soundproofed, Elena. Nothing from the ground floor reaches the east nursery."
"Well, I thought I heard something," I pressed on, my desperation giving me a reckless surge of courage. "Is there a problem, Mr. Vance? Am I not allowed to walk around the house?"
"You are allowed to do your job," Marcus snapped, the thin veneer of politeness instantly evaporating, revealing the ruthless shark underneath. He took another step closer, towering over me. "And your job is to watch my son in the nursery, not wander into my private study. Put your hands out of your pockets, Elena."
My heart hammered against my ribs like a sledgehammer. This is it, a voice screamed in my head. He knows.
May you like
"Mr. Vance, I think I'd like to leave," I said, my voice trembling as I backed away toward the far bookshelf, my fingers curling tightly around the USB drive in my pocket. "Please, just let me get my bag from the mudroom and call an Uber."
"Nobody is leaving anywhere," Marcus said coldly, his hand darting out with terrifying speed to grab my wrist in a crushing iron grip. "Not until you tell me what you were just looking at."
