Chapter 4
The rain had intensified into a steady downpour by the time Emma reached the neutral ground of the municipal park, a quiet sanctuary of towering oak trees and winding stone paths located three blocks from her apartment. She wore a heavy trench coat over her royal blue dress, pulling the collar up to shield her face from the biting wind. The park was completely deserted at this hour, save for the orange glow of vintage streetlamps casting long, flickering shadows over the wet benches. She checked her smartphone; the encrypted message from Perel Daley had arrived, containing an address and a digital key file. She needed to transfer the file to a secure physical drive before Julian's tech team managed to trace her mobile signal. A figure stepped out from beneath the canopy of a weeping willow, moving with cautious, deliberate steps. It was Marcus, an old family friend and former head of security for her father’s architectural firm, who had quietly resigned the week of the supposed tragedy. He looked older, his face lined with stress and exhaustion, wearing a plain dark raincoat that blended seamlessly into the gloom. "Emma," Marcus said softly, stopping a few feet away to ensure he wasn't perceived as a threat. "Thank God you got my message. I was afraid Julian's men had intercepted you." Emma gripped the strap of her handbag, her eyes scanning the dark perimeter of the park. "Marcus, Perel told me my father is alive. Is it true, or is this some elaborate trap to get me to hand over the remaining shares?" Marcus looked down, a melancholy smile touching his lips. "It’s true, Emma. Your father went into deep hiding because he discovered a massive money-laundering scheme operating right inside the board of directors. Julian and Clara were the architects of the theft, using your family's accounts as a shell company." Emma felt the ground metaphorically drop out from under her. Julian had always played the supportive fiancé, the comforting presence during her darkest days of mourning. To learn that he had actively participated in destroying her family for corporate greed made her physically ill. "Where is he, Marcus?" she demanded, stepping closer. "We have to get to him before Julian does." Marcus reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small, encrypted flash drive, extending it toward her with a trembling hand. "He's at an old cabin near Lake Placid. But you can't drive there openly. Julian has placed trackers on your vehicle, and his corporate security team is already combing the highways." Emma took the flash drive, her fingers brushing Marcus's cold skin. "How do you know all this?" she asked sharply, a sudden wave of suspicion washing over her. Marcus's eyes met hers, filled with profound sorrow. "Because I helped him fake his death three years ago to save his life. And now, I’m going to help you finish what he started."
