Chapter 3
Dominic paused his inspection and turned back toward his wife, giving her the opening she desperately craved. Eleanor stepped forward, closing the physical gap between them with purposeful grace, though her fingers trembled against the satin fabric. She gestured broadly toward Clara, who hung with her head bowed in utter defeat. The rain slicked Eleanor's face, highlighting the harsh lines of strain around her mouth. "She threatened your sister, Dominic," Eleanor explained, her voice rising slightly to compete with the rising wind. "I had to intervene before things went too far. Ask her about the trust fund, sir." The title slipped out with a strange, rehearsed formality that hung heavily in the wet air. Dominic’s expression shifted imperceptibly at the mention of his sister, Sarah, and the family trust fund that sustained their lavish, fragile lifestyle. That fund was the lifeblood of Marshall Manor, a heavily guarded legal entity meant to protect their generational wealth from outside predators. If someone within these walls had been tampering with the accounts, it threatened the very existence of everything Dominic held dear. Clara shook her head violently, her tied wrists straining against the ropes as she tried to deny the accusation. "It's a lie," Clara choked out, her voice raspy and thin from the cold and exhaustion. But Eleanor cut her off with a sharp glare, stepping closer to Dominic to press her advantage. "She has been looking at the ledger transcripts, Dominic. She knows about the missing disbursements. She tried to blackmail me into silence using Sarah's name." Eleanor’s eyes were wide, conveying a desperate sincerity that had fooled many business associates over the years. Dominic absorbed the information without blinking, his mind calculating the legal and social fallout of such a breach. He knew Sarah’s trust fund was vulnerable, but he also knew Eleanor’s capacity for fabrication when her status was threatened. The rain continued to pour down, plastering Clara's uniform to her ribs and chilling her to the bone. Dominic looked at his wife, searching beneath her polished exterior for the raw panic he knew must be lurking there. The mention of the trust fund had changed the dynamic from a simple domestic dispute into a dangerous financial conspiracy. He turned his attention back to the bound maid, sensing that the girl held a crucial piece of a puzzle he had been trying to solve for months.
