Chapter 7 - The Sister Who Vanished.
Elena forgot about the headlines for exactly three seconds.
Then everything became worse.
"Disappeared?"
Adrian nodded.
"From where?"
"Zurich."
"Why didn't you report it?"
"I did."
"Then why isn't it public?"
"Because Sofia asked for privacy years ago."
Elena paced away from the table.
"What does she have to do with my father?"
"More than I understood until now."
Adrian pulled up an old photograph on his phone.
Sofia was younger than Elena expected.
Maybe thirty-four.
Dark hair.
Serious eyes.
She stood beside Samuel Marlowe outside a hospital.
"When was this?"
"Nine years ago."
"Why were they together?"
"Sofia worked in forensic accounting."
Elena looked at him.
"Your mafia family had a forensic accountant?"
"My sister was trying very hard not to have a mafia family."
Despite herself, Elena almost smiled.
Adrian continued.
"Samuel hired her secretly to trace money leaving Marlowe Systems."
"Northstar."
"Yes."
"So she helped create the ledger."
"Likely."
Elena looked toward the dark monitors.
"And now someone who knows that ledger is sending us messages."
"Yes."
"Could it be Sofia?"
Adrian's expression tightened.
"I've been hoping that since the first message."
"Why wouldn't she just call you?"
"Because if Victor has access to our communications, a direct call could expose her location."
Elena leaned against the table.
"Or because Victor has her."
Adrian said nothing.
The possibility was clearly not new to him.
A security alarm sounded downstairs.
Not loud.
A short electronic tone.
Adrian turned toward the door.
His entire manner changed.
The calm billionaire disappeared.
The man Manhattan whispered about stepped forward.
"Stay here."
Elena bristled.
"No."
"This is not a debate."
"You said you don't order me around."
"I was wrong."
He opened the door.
Two security officers were already in the hallway.
One spoke quietly.
"Service elevator opened without authorization."
"Floor?"
"This floor."
Adrian looked at Elena.
"Lock the bedroom door."
She wanted to argue.
Then she saw the officer's hand hovering near his jacket.
She stepped back.
Adrian left.
The door closed.
Elena locked it.
For ten seconds she stood perfectly still.
Then she noticed the black case from Grand Central was no longer on the dining table.
Her stomach dropped.
The cybersecurity specialist had taken the flash drive to a secure room.
But the watch was gone too.
Elena looked around.
A soft sound came from the bathroom.
She turned.
The bathroom door was partly open.
She was certain it had been closed.
"Who's there?"
No answer.
Elena grabbed the heaviest object within reach.
A marble bookend.
She moved toward the door.
"I said, who's there?"
A woman stepped out slowly.
Elena nearly swung the bookend.
The woman raised both hands.
She wore a gray maintenance uniform and a baseball cap.
Her face was pale.
A thin cut marked her forehead.
Elena recognized her from Adrian's phone.
"Sofia?"
The woman nodded.
"Lock the outer door again."
"It is locked."
"The internal latch."
Elena slid the second latch into place.
"How did you get in here?"
"Service shaft."
"Your brother thinks you've been kidnapped."
"That's what Victor wanted him to think."
Elena lowered the bookend.
"Did you send the messages?"
"Yes."
"Did you stage Preston's kidnapping photo?"
Sofia shook her head.
"Victor did."
"Why did you send him two million dollars?"
"I didn't."
"Your signature authorized it."
"My credentials were stolen."
Elena felt a flash of frustration.
"Everyone's signature is getting stolen today."
Sofia gave a tired, humorless smile.
"That's because Victor built his plan around signatures."
"What plan?"
Sofia reached inside her uniform.
She removed a small memory card.
"To make every theft look voluntary."
Elena's anger sharpened.
"My father knew?"
"He knew enough."
"Did Victor kill him?"
Sofia's eyes flickered.
"I don't know."
"That's not good enough."
"It's the truth."
Footsteps approached outside.
Adrian's voice called through the door.
"Elena?"
Sofia grabbed her wrist.
"Do not tell him I'm here yet."
Elena stared at her.
"He's your brother."
"I know."
"He's been looking for you for three weeks."
"I know."
"Then why are you hiding from him?"
Sofia's grip tightened.
"Because one person inside Adrian's house has been feeding Victor information."
Elena looked toward the locked door.
"Who?"
Sofia shook her head.
"I don't know."
Adrian knocked again.
"Elena, answer me."
Sofia leaned close.
"But I know the leak was in this penthouse last night."
Elena looked toward the bedroom door again.
The penthouse suddenly felt less like a fortress and more like a glass box.
Every camera Adrian had shown her that morning had been meant to prove what happened.
Now she wondered who else had watched those same cameras.
"How much did Victor receive?" she asked.
"Not video files." Sofia shook her head.
"Short clips."
"Enough to edit."
"Exactly."
Sofia reached into her pocket and handed Elena a folded strip of paper.
It contained three time stamps.
1:48 A.M.
2:17 A.M.
2:22 A.M.
"Those were the moments somebody exported footage from Adrian's internal server."
Elena stared at the middle time.
The ceremony.
"Who had access?"
"Four people."
"Adrian?"
"Yes."
"You?"
"Yes."
"Who else?"
Sofia's jaw tightened.
"His attorney had limited access."
"And the fourth?"
Sofia hesitated.
"Marcus Danner."
The name meant nothing to Elena then.
Sofia clearly wished it did.
Elena's pulse spiked.
"During the wedding?"
"Yes."
"How do you know?"
May you like
Sofia held up the memory card.
"Because someone sent Victor a recording of you saying yes before the ceremony was even over."
