Chương 6
She set it beside her phone.
The diamond lay on the black glass like something detached from a machine.
Adrian said nothing.
Vanessa sat across from him.
“I’m not giving it back tonight.”
His eyes lifted.
“I didn’t ask.”
“I know. I just don’t want you deciding what it means.”
He nodded.
She folded her arms.
“I need you to tell me one thing without making it sound better.”
“All right.”
“Did you love her?”
Elena looked away.
Adrian did not.
“Yes.”
Vanessa swallowed.
“Did you plan to marry her?”
“Yes.”
“Did you stop because of what she accused your company of doing?”
He took too long.
Vanessa nodded.
“Okay.”
“It wasn’t only that.”
“I didn’t ask for the defense.”
He looked down at his hands.
“We were already having problems.”
“Of course you were.”
“Vanessa.”
“No, I believe you. People always have problems right before one of them destroys the other person professionally. The timing is probably incidental.”
Elena looked at Vanessa with something like reluctant respect.
Adrian absorbed the remark.
Vanessa put her palms flat on the table.
“You know what bothers me most?”
He did not answer.
“I don’t care that you loved someone before me.”
Her voice trembled.
She looked furious about that tremble.
“I care that I have spent three years believing your worst quality was that you sometimes answer emails while I’m talking.”
Adrian looked at her.
“You built an entire personality out of being controlled. Disciplined. Rational. You made me think your silences were integrity.”
She looked toward Lily sleeping in the next room.
“Now I’m sitting six feet from a child who may be yours because apparently one of those silences contained a whole person.”
Adrian looked at the ring on the table.
Vanessa followed his gaze.
“Don’t.”
He looked away.
At 2:37, Leonard Pierce called again.
Adrian let it ring twice.
Then he answered on speaker.
Leonard did not bother with pleasantries.
“I need you to stop accessing historical legal files.”
Vanessa’s eyebrows rose.
Adrian said, “Why?”
“Because I’m seeing archive requests that implicate privileged materials.”
“You’re monitoring my access.”
“I’m protecting the company.”
“From whom?”
Silence.
Adrian’s eyes narrowed.
“From me?”
“From a situation you do not understand.”
Elena stood.
Vanessa held up one hand to stop her from speaking.
Adrian said, “Then explain it.”
“Not over the phone.”
“Tell me why Mara Hart’s employee record was removed from standard retention.”
Leonard exhaled.
“That matter was handled under a separation protocol.”
“Why does a security log show her personal property transferred to you?”
“I don’t remember individual property items from six years ago.”
“The item was an engagement ring.”
Another silence.
This time Leonard filled it too quickly.
“If this is about paternity allegations, do not engage. People make claims around wealthy families all the time.”
Adrian’s face became completely still.
Elena whispered, “He knows.”
Vanessa stared at the phone.
Adrian said, “I never told you there was a child.”
Leonard did not answer.
Adrian leaned closer to the speaker.
“How do you know there’s a paternity allegation?”
The line went dead.
Nobody moved for several seconds.
Then Kline said quietly, “Sir.”
Adrian looked at him.
The guard touched his earpiece.
“Operations just tried to remotely disable archive access in this room.”
Vanessa laughed.
This time there was no humor at all.
“Your company is charming.”
Adrian stood.
“Can they?”
“Not while local emergency mode is active.”
“Why?”
“Mountain safety. If network control drops during a storm, onsite administration retains system authority.”
Elena looked toward the windows.
“So the storm is protecting us.”
Adrian shook his head.
“The storm is delaying them.”
He turned to Marcus.
“Where are local security archives physically stored?”
Marcus hesitated.
“Sublevel two.”
“Can Leonard access them remotely?”
“Not in emergency isolation.”
“Who can access them onsite?”
“The director. Chief engineer. Senior security.”
“Are you senior security?”
“No.”
Kline said, “Hale was promoted last year.”
Marcus looked at him.
Kline shrugged.
“You are tonight.”
Adrian almost smiled.
Marcus did not.
“Mr. Vale, I need to say something before this turns into me losing my job for helping you raid your own company.”
“You won’t lose your job.”
Marcus looked at him.
The earlier conversation remained between them.
Adrian corrected himself.
“I shouldn’t promise that.”
Marcus nodded.
“Thank you.”
Adrian waited.
Marcus rubbed the seam of his jacket again.
“The archive contains incident footage. Some of it may include Ms. Hart’s removal.”
Elena went pale.
Adrian said, “Take me there.”
“No.”
Everyone turned toward Elena.
She had both hands on the back of a chair.
“No more doing things before we know what it does to Mara.”
Adrian’s frustration surfaced.
“This is evidence.”
“It’s her life.”
“It is also mine.”
“That sentence is exactly the problem.”
Vanessa looked between them.
Adrian said, “If Leonard intercepted contact from Mara, I need proof.”
“You need proof for yourself.”
“Yes.”
“At three in the morning.”
“Yes.”
“While Lily is asleep in the next room.”
He stopped.
Elena took a breath.
“I have watched Mara spend six years putting pieces of herself back where your company left holes. You do not get to rip open every record tonight because suddenly not knowing hurts you.”
He stared at her.
The observatory lights dimmed for half a second as the generator load shifted.
Elena continued.
“Call Mara.”
Adrian’s expression changed.
“You said you wouldn’t tell me where she is.”
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t call her.”
She took out her phone.
Her thumb hovered over the screen.
Then she looked at him.
“If she says stop, you stop.”
Adrian did not answer immediately.
Vanessa said, “Say yes.”
He looked at her.
She nodded toward Elena.
“Just once in your life, Adrian. Let somebody else control the door.”
He exhaled.
“Yes.”
Elena called.
Mara answered after five rings.
“Elena?”
Her voice was rough with sleep.
Elena looked at Lily.
“I’m sorry.”
“What happened?”
“Nothing happened to Lily.”
Adrian’s head lowered slightly.
Mara heard something in the silence.
May you like
“Elena.”
“We got trapped at the observatory.”
