Chapter 1 - The Broken Balustrade
Raymond’s boots hit the polished foyer marble with a thunderous echo as his arms locked around Clara. The impact shuddered through his spine, but his grip remained unbreakable. Clara clung to the lapels of his suit, her pale knuckles trembling, her breath hitching in ragged gasps against his throat. Above them, beneath the glittering prisms of the grand crystal chandelier, the mezzanine balcony was vacant. Cynthia had vanished like a wraith into the shadowed corridor.
""She... she pushed me, Raymond,"" Clara whispered, her hazel eyes wide with horror as tears welled and spilled down her cheeks. ""She smiled before she let go.""
Raymond didn't blink. His jaw clenched into stone, a cold, terrifying stillness settling over his features. Keeping Clara pinned against his chest with one arm, he slid his phone from his coat and pressed speed dial.
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""Lockdown protocol,"" Raymond commanded into the receiver, his voice chillingly calm. ""Seal the perimeter gates. Nobody leaves the grounds. And call the police—attempted murder.""
Across the estate, the heavy security sirens began to wail, cutting through the midnight silence. Raymond carried Clara toward the study, his gaze flicking to the dark corners of the grand hall. As he placed her onto the leather sofa, his phone buzzed with an incoming text from an unlisted number. Raymond glanced at the screen: Check the safe in your bedroom, brother. She took more than your heart.
