Chapter 9 - Rachel Carter’s Archive
The chamber beneath the lake went silent.
Adrian stared at Marcus.
“My mother stole it?”
Marcus nodded reluctantly.
“Not for money.”
“Then why?”
“Because Rachel created the archive as protection.”
“Against Vincent?”
“Against everyone.”
Marcus looked toward Claire’s monitor.
“Rachel was an investigative accountant.”
“She discovered Blackwood payments that didn’t make sense.”
“She started copying records.”
“Then she built a network of evidence.”
Claire turned toward Thomas.
“You knew this?”
Thomas looked shaken.
“No.”
Vincent laughed softly through his monitor.
“Thomas knew very little.”
Thomas glared at him.
“You told me Rachel died because of Eleanor.”
“I told you what kept you useful.”
Adrian’s anger rose.
“Enough.”
Everyone stopped.
“Who killed Eleanor?”
Vincent leaned closer to his camera.
“Open the vault.”
“No.”
“Then you will never know.”
Adrian looked at Marcus.
“You said Rachel created the archive.”
“Yes.”
“What happened to Rachel?”
Marcus looked toward Thomas.
Thomas’s face changed.
“Rachel disappeared.”
Claire whispered.
“My mother is alive?”
Thomas shook his head slowly.
“I don’t know.”
Claire looked devastated.
“You told me she died.”
“I believed she did.”
Vincent spoke.
“This is becoming sentimental.”
Adrian faced the screen.
“Why Claire?”
Vincent answered immediately.
“Because Rachel left something with her daughter.”
Claire looked confused.
“What?”
Vincent smiled.
“A memory.”
Thomas stepped in front of Claire.
“She was a child.”
“Exactly.”
Vincent sounded pleased.
“Children remember things adults overlook.”
Adrian thought of Sophie.
The bunny.
The keys.
Claire had repeated the same method with her own daughter.
“What memory?”
Vincent asked Claire.
“What song did your mother sing when she locked the archive?”
Claire froze.
Thomas turned toward her.
“You remember?”
Claire shook her head.
“No.”
But her expression said otherwise.
Vincent saw it.
“There.”
“That look.”
“You do remember.”
Claire stepped backward.
Adrian spoke.
“Claire, don’t tell him.”
Vincent sighed.
“Adrian, you have always confused morality with control.”
Adrian laughed without humor.
“And you confused power with love.”
For the first time, Vincent looked angry.
Marcus placed his palm on the second scanner.
The system recognized him.
SECOND AUTHORIZATION ACCEPTED.
Adrian stared.
“What are you doing?”
Marcus kept his hand in place.
“Forcing the choice.”
A countdown appeared.
VAULT ACCESS WINDOW: 60 SECONDS.
Adrian’s scanner illuminated.
Marcus looked at him.
“Either we open it now or the system locks for another year.”
Vincent’s expression changed.
“You fool.”
Marcus smiled slightly.
“That’s the first honest thing you’ve said tonight.”
Adrian looked at the countdown.
Fifty seconds.
Claire shouted.
“Don’t open it.”
Thomas agreed.
“Adrian, listen to her.”
Marcus spoke.
“If you don’t, Vincent will spend another year trying to get around the system.”
Adrian looked toward Vincent.
His father’s face revealed something.
Fear.
Vincent wanted the vault.
But he also feared it.
That meant the archive held leverage against him.
Thirty-five seconds.
Adrian placed his palm on the scanner.
“Adrian.”
Claire’s voice cracked.
He looked at her monitor.
“What?”
“If you open that vault, Sophie’s name may be inside.”
Adrian removed his hand.
The countdown continued.
“Why would Sophie be in a twenty-year-old archive?”
Claire looked toward Thomas.
Then toward the camera.
“Because the archive isn’t twenty years old.”
Marcus frowned.
“What?”
Claire continued.
“Someone has been updating it.”
Vincent went completely still.
Adrian noticed.
“Who?”
Claire stared directly at Vincent’s monitor.
“Your father.”
Thomas slowly turned toward Vincent’s screen.
Vincent said nothing.
Claire explained.
“I found access logs in the basement.”
“Files added every month.”
“Current employees.”
“Current accounts.”
“Current surveillance.”
Adrian thought of the cameras in Sophie’s bedroom.
“You continued Rachel’s system.”
Vincent finally spoke.
“I improved it.”
Adrian felt disgust.
“You tracked Sophie.”
“I tracked everyone.”
“Why?”
“To protect what belongs to this family.”
“People don’t belong to you.”
Vincent smiled coldly.
“Your idealism is exhausting.”
The countdown hit fifteen seconds.
Marcus looked at Adrian.
“Choose.”
Adrian stared at the scanner.
Ten.
Claire shouted.
“Wait.”
Nine.
She turned toward Thomas.
“Tell him about the third lock.”
Marcus’s face changed.
“What third lock?”
Thomas whispered.
“Rachel added one.”
Five.
Adrian looked at Claire.
“What does it need?”
Claire answered.
“Her bloodline.”
Two.
One.
The access window closed.
The vault remained sealed.
Vincent slammed his hand against something off-screen.
Marcus stepped away from the scanner.
“You knew?”
Thomas nodded.
“Rachel told me.”
“And you never said?”
“Because I thought Claire would be safer if nobody knew.”
Claire stared at him.
“You built my entire life around lies.”
Thomas looked broken.
“I built it around keeping you alive.”
A red warning light suddenly illuminated.
Adrian looked up.
SYSTEM OVERRIDE INITIATED.
Marcus’s expression changed.
“That shouldn’t be possible.”
Vincent smiled again.
“I’ve had eight years to prepare.”
Heavy locks engaged around the chamber.
The staircase door slammed shut.
Claire’s monitor went black.
Thomas disappeared.
Then Vincent’s face filled every screen.
“You had your chance.”
His voice became cold.
May you like
“Now I’ll open the vault without you.”
The floor beneath Adrian suddenly began to move.
