Chapter 6
Evelyn’s hand hovered over the deadbolt for a agonizing second before she turned the lock and pulled the heavy wooden door open just a few inches, keeping the security chain firmly engaged. The cold night air rushed into the hallway, carrying the smell of wet pavement.
The man standing on the porch didn't look like a typical process server; he wore a tailored designer suit, and his sharp, professional expression lacked the usual cold detachment of a courier. He held the thick manila envelope up to the gap in the door, his eyes dark and unreadable under the harsh porch light.
"Evelyn Vance?" the man asked, his voice deep and measured.
"That's me," Evelyn replied defensively, tightening her grip on the brass umbrella stand hidden just out of sight. "If you're here to serve papers from Nyah Vance, you can turn right back around. It's midnight. There are proper legal channels, and this is harassment."
The man gave a slow, humorless smile, sliding a business card through the narrow crack in the door. Evelyn looked down at the heavy cardstock. It bore the name Marcus Thorne: Senior Partner, Thorne & Associates Family Law.
"I am not here on behalf of your daughter, Mrs. Vance," Marcus said calmly, shifting his weight. "I am here because my firm was retained approximately three hours ago by an anonymous benefactor who caught wind of what happened on that twentieth-floor balcony tonight. We have emergency documentation ready for emergency temporary guardianship, bypass of parental consent, and an immediate restraining order against Nyah Vance."
Evelyn blinked, stunned into momentary silence. The entire proposition felt entirely too surreal, like a plot twist from a cheap legal drama. "Anonymous? What kind of sick game is this? Who would even know about what happened on the balcony? We were twenty stories up!"
"Security cameras on the adjacent commercial tower caught the entire exchange, Mrs. Vance," Marcus explained flatly, his tone dropping to a serious murmur. "The video is already circulating among high-level corporate circles downtown. Nyah’s investors have seen it. Her board of directors has seen it. She is in a panic-induced tailspin, and her lawyers are moving to protect her corporate image by framing you as an unstable, trespassing kidnapper to preempt the fallout."
Inside the living room, Leo let out a sudden, blood-curdling scream that shattered the quiet of the hallway.
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Evelyn abandoned the door entirely, snapping the chain and sprinting down the hall, leaving Marcus standing on the porch as she threw open the living room archway.
Leo was sitting bolt upright on the sofa, clutching his chest, pointing a trembling finger toward the front window where a glowing red laser dot was slowly tracing a path across the wall.
