Chapter 5: Shadows in the Parlor**
Elena stepped quietly onto the porch, avoiding the warped planks that threatened to creak. The front door was unlatched.
Inside, the smell of damp wallpaper, cedar, and old dust hung heavy in the air. A single gas lantern flickered on a mahogany desk in the center of the grand parlor.
Julian stood behind the desk, a leather-bound folio open before him. Leo sat on a high-backed wooden chair, his feet dangling several inches above the floor. The boy held a pen in his trembling right hand, his eyes fixed on a thick stack of legal documents.
"Hold the pen properly, Leo," Julian said, his tone deceptively gentle, like a schoolmaster chiding a slow pupil. "Just your name. Three times."
"I want to go home, Papa," Leo whispered, a tear tracing a path through the dust on his cheek. "Where is Grandma?"
"Grandma is resting," Julian said without looking up. "Sign the paper."
"He doesn't even know how to write his full name in cursive yet, Julian," Elena’s voice cut through the shadows from the doorway.
Julian didn't jump. He slowly raised his head, a cold smile touching the corners of his mouth. "Elena. You always were unpunctual. I expected you twenty minutes ago."
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From the shadows behind the doorframe, the click of a revolver hammer cocking echoed through the room. Marcus stepped into view, the barrel pointed directly at Elena’s chest.
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