Chapter 14 - The Vault of Shadows
Pierce’s eyes narrowed as he turned to Marcus. ""Opened by whom? Eleanor’s estate was completely sealed after her funeral.""
""The biometric scanner accepted a direct retinal match,"" Marcus said, his voice trembling slightly. ""A living match, Mr. Sterling. Registered less than forty-five minutes ago at the Place Vendôme branch.""
Claire pulled back from Pierce, her eyes wide with disbelief. ""Mom is alive? That’s impossible... we buried her in Geneva!""
""We held a closed-casket service following a burning car crash in the Alps,"" Pierce said, the ground suddenly shifting beneath his feet. ""DNA was verified by a private coroner whom Derek recommended.""
The pieces clicked together in Pierce’s mind like the turning of a heavy iron lock. The gambling debts, the sudden disappearance of assets, the forged liens—it wasn't just Derek’s greed. Derek was merely a pawn in a game orchestrated by someone who understood every vulnerability in the Sterling family empire.
""Get the cars,"" Pierce commanded, his voice cold as a winter grave. ""We move to Place Vendôme immediately.""
The convoy raced through the sleeping city, pulling up outside the historic limestone facade of Banque Privée. Armed guards let Pierce and Claire through the heavy reinforced vault doors into the underground subterranean chambers.
The private vault room was completely silent. Security deposit box 409 hung open on the wall, its mechanical locks bypassed from within the bank’s central terminal.
On the polished mahogany table in the center of the vault room sat a single, handwritten note resting beside an empty velvet jewelry box.
May you like
Claire stepped forward, picking up the note with trembling fingers. The handwriting was elegant, familiar, and unmistakably her mother’s.
Pierce, Claire, the note read. Derek played his part well, but he became sloppy. The nine hundred and twenty thousand was never meant for debts—it was my exit fee. Don't look for me. And Pierce... check Leo’s bloodline before you hand over the family fortune.
