Chapter 1 - The Glow of the Glass
Marcus stared at the cold light of his smartphone screen, the harsh blue glare clashing with the warm, flickering amber of the dining room candles. Across the polished marble table, Maya chewed a piece of gnocchi with agonizing slowness. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the Seattle skyline flickered on as dusk deepened into a heavy, violet night. They had lived in this upscale penthouse for five years, yet tonight the space felt less like a home and more like a high-altitude interrogation room.
Marcus cleared his throat, the sound dry and unnatural in the quiet room. "You are not going to say anything about the alert?"
Maya did not look up immediately. She lowered her fork, the metal clinking softly against the white porcelain plate. Her brown blazer rustled as she adjusted her posture, the gold pendant necklace catching the candlelight.
"I am waiting for you to tell me the truth, Marcus," Maya said, her voice dangerously calm. "Not the sanitized version you rehearse in the shower."
"The alert is just a standard corporate audit," Marcus lied, his thumb pressing harder against the glass of his phone.
"An audit that freezes our joint accounts and liquidates our Seattle property?" Maya leaned forward, her dark wavy hair falling over her shoulders. "Don't insult my intelligence, Marcus. I know about the missing foundation funds."
Marcus felt a cold sweat break out along his neat beard. "You have no idea what you are talking about. You are jumping to conclusions based on a fragmented notification."
"A notification sent to my encrypted email, Marcus," Maya whispered, her eyes locking onto his with terrifying intensity. "Because your corporate safety net forgot that we filed our taxes jointly. Now, who is David Vance, and why did you wire him four million dollars this morning?"
Marcus dropped his phone onto the table. The screen went dark, plunging them into sudden shadow.
"How did you get that name?" Marcus breathed, his voice cracking.
May you like
Maya smiled, a humorless, chilling curve of her lips. "Because David Vance is my brother, Marcus. And he died three years ago."
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