Chapter 6 - Unraveling the Sabotage
Daniel stood up from the workbench, his knuckles white as he gripped the edge of the table. The grief that had paralyzed him for six months transformed instantly into a cold, lethal clarity.
Claire hadn't just been taken by a tragic twist of fate. She had been targeted. And she knew she was in danger.
"Vance," Daniel said, his voice dropping into a register of quiet steel. "Get local authorities and my security team to the estate right now. Quietly. Do not turn on sirens."
"I'm ten minutes away," Vance replied.
Daniel turned to Annie. "Annie, I need you to go upstairs to your mother. Stay in the room and lock the door."
Annie shook her head firmly. "The car needs to be near the studio to play the rest of the message, Mr. Whitmore. I fixed the contact wire, but you have to hold the bumper switch down while walking toward the signal."
Daniel looked at the brave little girl. He gently stroked her hair. "You've done more than enough, little mechanic. I'll take it from here."
Taking the red car in his hand, Daniel pressed the hidden bumper switch. A soft hum of static emitted from the tiny speaker.
He walked out of the basement and ascended the grand staircase toward the third floor—the west wing, where Claire’s studio lay locked behind heavy mahogany doors.
As he reached the landing of the third floor, the static from the toy car began to clear. The hum transformed into a crisp, clear audio signal. Claire’s voice began to play again, echoing in the dark, empty corridor.
"...Daniel, if you are hearing this, it means you brought Ethan’s car back to my studio. I hid the master drive inside the frame of my canvas painting of the oak tree. Halpern knows I found the altered ledgers. He thinks I haven't told anyone yet, but I've uploaded the primary files to the drive behind the canvas..."
Suddenly, a shadow detached itself from the dark doorway of the studio.
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Mr. Halpern stepped into the corridor, holding a heavy iron fireplace poker. His face was twisted in desperation, his neat demeanor entirely shattered.
"You should have just let the boy throw the toy away, Mr. Whitmore," Halpern hissed, his voice raspy. "You were supposed to remain broken! You were supposed to let me manage the estate until everything was drained!"
