Chapter 5 - An Unexpected Ally
The door swung open just wide enough to reveal a pale, anxious face peering into the dim bedroom. It was Martha, the elderly housekeeper who had served Blackwood Manor for over four decades. Her hair was gathered in a loose grey net, and her hands shook visibly as she clutched a ring of master keys to her chest. Clara pulled Leo back slightly, her instincts flaring, but Martha pressed a wrinkled finger to her lips, stepping quickly into the room and pulling the door shut behind her.
"Keep your voices down," Martha whispered urgently, her eyes darting toward the hallway. "Mr. Arthur and Madam Beatrice think I'm downstairs cleaning the silver, but I couldn't sit by and watch them destroy you both."
Clara stepped forward, hope flickering faintly in her chest. "Martha, you know what they're doing. You know about the forged documents, the safe, everything."
"I've worked in this house for forty years, Mrs. Clara," Martha replied, her voice thick with suppressed emotion. "I saw what they did to Mr. Noah in his final months, the strange medicine they had me add to his evening tea when the doctors weren't looking. I was too cowardly to speak up then, but I won't let them harm this little boy."
She reached into the deep pocket of her apron and pulled out a small, prepaid burner phone, pressing it into Clara’s hands. The screen glowed with a single bar of cellular service.
"Use this now," Martha instructed in a hurried whisper. "Call the federal district attorney's office directly. Do not call local law enforcement; Beatrice has the local chief of police on her payroll. Give them the serial number of the safe documents and tell them about the security logs from Noah's medical ward."
Clara took the phone with trembling fingers, dialing the emergency number that Noah had once given her for his personal legal counsel before his health declined. The line rang twice before a deep, professional voice answered on the other end, asking for identification.
Before Clara could speak a single word, a loud, heavy crash echoed from the hallway downstairs, followed by the unmistakable sound of breaking glass and angry shouting.
Martha’s face drained of what little color it had left, her eyes widening in sheer terror as she looked toward the bedroom door.
"They found out," Martha gasped, stumbling backward. "They know I took the master keys."
May you like
Before Clara could process the warning, the door to the guest suite was kicked inward with a deafening crash, splintering the wooden frame and sending dust billowing into the room. Arthur stood in the doorway, holding a heavy iron fireplace poker, a dark, wicked smile twisting his features.
---
