Chapter 4 - The lockdown order
The heavy silence that followed Nora’s words felt like a physical weight pressing down on the grand foyer. Adrian did not move. His slow eye movement shifted from the small girl in front of him to the terrified woman standing several feet away. Claire was trembling, her hands gripping the white fabric of her maid’s apron so tightly her knuckles were white. Her chest rose and fell in rapid, shallow breaths. She looked like a woman standing in front of a firing squad.
Adrian slowly stood up. The towering height of the Connecticut mafia boss cast a long shadow over Nora, but he made no aggressive movements toward the child. He looked at the three security guards standing by the door. His face was a mask of cold, terrifying composure, but the micro-expressions around his eyes betrayed a storm of grief, rage, and absolute confusion.
"Lock the gates," Adrian said, his voice stripped of all emotion. "Nobody leaves this estate. Nobody makes a phone call."
The guards moved instantly, their hands reaching for their earpieces as they stepped out to secure the perimeter. Mrs. Holloway remained frozen near the archway, her eyes darting between Claire and Adrian. She knew the secret, and she knew the consequences of lying to a man like Adrian Cole.
Claire rushed forward, dropping to her knees on the marble floor. She wrapped her arms around Nora, pulling the little girl tightly against her chest. Nora looked confused by her mother’s sudden panic, her small hands patting Claire’s shoulder.
"Mr. Cole, please," Claire whispered, her voice cracking. "Please don't hurt her. I'll tell you everything. Just don't let her see you angry."
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Adrian looked down at the beautiful, anxious woman holding his dead brother’s child. He slipped the silver pocket watch into the inner pocket of his fitted black suit. His jaw tightened, the trimmed stubble making his sharp features look even more severe in the warm lighting.
"Take her to the west wing playroom," Adrian instructed Mrs. Holloway, his tone flat. He then looked back at Claire. "You are coming with me to the study. If you lie to me about this, Claire, there is no place on earth you can hide."
