Chapter 4: The Biometric Log
The heavy oak door of the control room swung open, admitting David, the head of estate security. A towering man with broad shoulders and a permanent look of professional vigilance, David nodded respectfully to Marcus before stepping inside. He carried a rugged tablet computer tucked securely under one arm, its screen dark and dormant.
"You called for the logs, Mr. Vance?" David asked, his voice a deep, gravelly baritone that seemed to absorb the tension in the room.
"I did," Marcus replied, standing up from his chair and towering over the security chief. "We have an intrusion in the master wing from earlier this afternoon. Someone wearing a standard staff uniform accessed the private corridor and planted stolen jewelry in a handbag."
David’s expression hardened. He tapped the screen of his tablet, waking it from sleep mode with a soft chime. "That shouldn't be possible without triggering an alert. Every staff member wears an active RFID badge that logs their location every time they pass through a security checkpoint or door reader."
"Then check the logs for two o'clock to two-thirty," Evelyn demanded, stepping forward, her patience wearing paper-thin. "Find out which maid was in my hallway."
David tapped through several menus, his fingers moving with practiced familiarity across the glass interface. A spreadsheet of names, timestamps, and door IDs materialized on the display. He scrolled down, his eyes scanning the data columns. The silence in the room grew heavy, broken only by the low hum of the server racks in the corner.
"Well?" Evelyn pressed, her voice rising an octave.
David stopped scrolling, frowning deeply as he stared at the glowing screen. He tilted the tablet slightly, adjusting his grip. "That's... unusual, sir. According to the system logs, only one staff badge was active in that zone during the specified timeframe. Badge number 408, registered to Elena Martinez."
Elena gasped, stepping back as if she had been physically struck. "No! That's impossible! I told you, I was in the basement laundry room the entire time!"
"The system doesn't lie, Elena," Evelyn snapped, her anger flaring back to life like a banked fire. She turned to Marcus with a vindicated expression. "There it is. The digital proof. She used her own badge to get past the security door, and now she's lying to our faces to save her own skin."
Elena looked frantically between Evelyn and Marcus, her chest heaving as panic threatened to overwhelm her. "Mr. Vance, please! You have to believe me! I never went near that hallway! My badge... I left my badge on the charging dock in the breakroom during my shift change! Anyone could have picked it up!"
Marcus held up a hand, silencing the escalating argument. He stared hard at David, ignoring his wife's protests for a moment. "Is that true, David? Can a badge be removed from the charging dock without authorization?"
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David hesitated, his brow furrowing as he considered the security protocols. "The charging dock is in the staff breakroom. It's monitored by a wide-angle camera, but... there is a blind spot near the lockers."
Marcus’s eyes narrowed. "Pull the breakroom camera footage for one-thirty to two o'clock. Let's see who else was in that room."
