Kane is already making a complaint against you,” she said.
“He claims you attempted to steal trade secrets and demanded money in exchange for silence.”
“That never happened.”
“Mr.
Cole recorded the call from the car.
Kane’s own words may cause him difficulty.”
“Will you arrest him?”
“We need evidence from the house, statements from witnesses, and confirmation that the bedroom door was locked.
His attorneys are moving quickly.
We will move carefully.”
A commotion rose beyond the interview room.
Marissa had arrived with two lawyers and Victor’s head of security.
She had changed her dress and removed the diamond necklace she wore at the party.
Her mascara had been deliberately smudged.
Through the narrow window, I watched her embrace an officer and speak with the trembling concern of a mother searching for a troubled child.
Then she saw me.
For half a second, the performance disappeared.
She touched the front of her coat as though checking for something hidden inside.
Detective Ortiz noticed.
“Stay here,” she said.
Minutes later, Ethan entered with a gray-haired man I recognized as Daniel Mercer.
Rain darkened the shoulders of Daniel’s suit.
“I put the folder in Mr.
Cole’s car,” he said before the door closed.
“Your father instructed me to do it if Marissa ever separated you from your phone and took you upstairs with Victor.”
I stared at him.
“He gave you those exact instructions?”
Daniel’s face folded with grief.
“He had seen how Victor looked at you.
He had also discovered that Marissa was trying to have you declared financially incompetent before your birthday.”
He handed Detective Ortiz a flash drive.
“The house has internal security cameras.
Marissa ordered them disabled tonight.
I copied the backup first.”
The video did not show inside the bedroom, but it showed enough.
Marissa took my phone and slipped it into Victor’s coat pocket.
She guided me upstairs, stepped out, and locked the door with a brass key.
Nine minutes later, the lamp shattered.
When I escaped, she blocked my path and struck me.
It also captured the guests below.
Several turned toward the noise.
Victor’s assistant started up the stairs, but Marissa’s brother stopped her.
Daniel moved toward the front door before I came running down, positioning himself to open it.
Most damaging was the footage after I fled.
Victor descended the stairs and said, “Find her before she reaches Cole.”
Marissa answered, “The folder is already gone.”
They had known Ethan was outside.
The anonymous source who summoned him had been Daniel, but Victor and Marissa had somehow discovered the meeting.
The SUV had not followed us by chance.
Detective Ortiz left the room with the flash drive.
Marissa’s lawyers stopped speaking when she returned to the lobby.
Victor had arrived by then, accompanied by three attorneys and wearing the expression of a man inconvenienced by other people’s laws.
He demanded that the folder be returned as stolen property.
Ethan calmly produced my father’s written authorization.
Victor’s lead attorney read the first page, then asked for a private conference.
