Chapter 3 - The Ghost of the Past
Patricia violently threw herself entirely onto the wet tiles, narrowly avoiding a second deadly sniper round.
The high-caliber bullet embedded itself deeply into the concrete wall, sending sharp shards of masonry raining down upon them.
"Keep your head completely down and crawl toward the glass doors!" Patricia screamed to Melissa over the roaring wind.
They scrambled frantically across the freezing balcony like desperate animals, leaving a trail of blood from their minor cuts.
Patricia reached the adjacent suite's sliding glass door and prayed fiercely that it was unlocked.
She violently yanked the heavy metal handle, and to her absolute astonishment, the door slid smoothly open.
They rapidly tumbled into the dark, unfamiliar hotel room and immediately pulled the heavy blackout curtains completely shut.
Patricia lay on her back on the soft carpet, gasping for breath as her heart threatened to explode from her chest.
"Who in the world is shooting at us from the outside?" Melissa cried, shivering violently in her soaked bathrobe.
"Thomas must have a professional sniper stationed on the roof of the corporate building across the street," Patricia deduced grimly.
She slowly sat up, wincing at the sharp pain in her bruised knee, and looked at the terrified billionaire's wife.
"We need to completely understand why my face was in that highly classified folder, Melissa," Patricia demanded with absolute authority.
Melissa pulled the damp manila folder from her leather bag, utilizing the dim light from the hallway beneath the door.
She flipped through the detailed financial documents attached to Patricia's surveillance photograph.
"This document references a massive corporate payout from a construction accident exactly fourteen months ago," Melissa read slowly.
Patricia felt a sudden, sickening drop in her stomach as a horrifying realization washed over her.
Fourteen months ago, her beloved husband, David, had tragically died in a suspicious scaffolding collapse at a major city construction site.
"Thomas's real estate firm owned that specific construction site, didn't they?" Patricia asked, her voice dangerously quiet.
Melissa looked up, tears completely filling her terrified eyes as she connected the dark, twisted pieces.
"Thomas aggressively bought the bankrupt construction company right after the accident and absorbed the massive union pension fund," Melissa confessed.
Patricia realized with absolute horror that her husband's death had never been a tragic workplace accident.
Thomas had intentionally orchestrated the deadly collapse to steal millions from the workers' pension fund, and he was planning to kill Patricia to silence any potential lawsuits.
"He murdered my husband for money, and now he is actively trying to murder both of us to protect his disgusting empire," Patricia growled, her fear entirely replaced by a burning, vengeful rage.
She aggressively stood up, grabbing a heavy brass table lamp from the nightstand to use as a makeshift weapon.
"We are not going to simply hide and wait for them to slaughter us, Melissa."
"We are going to forcefully expose his entire criminal syndicate to the world tonight."
Suddenly, the lights in the unfamiliar hotel room were brightly flipped on by a master switch near the front door.
Standing in the entryway of the room was Mr. Henderson, the supposedly friendly and professional general manager of the Grand Horizon Hotel.
He was casually wearing his immaculate uniform, but his expression was completely devoid of any human warmth.
In his right hand, he held a highly customized, silenced tactical pistol aimed directly at Patricia's chest.
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"I am truly sorry, Patricia, because you were always such an incredibly reliable employee," Mr. Henderson said smoothly.
Before the corrupt manager could pull the sensitive trigger, a massive explosion rocked the entire floor above them.
