Chapter 2 - The Unwanted Guest
I dropped the phone on the table and shoved the folded will deep into the pocket of my oversized cardigan.
"Helena, open this door right now!" Justin roared, pounding his fists against the cracked wood.
I rushed into the living room and told Lucas to stay hidden beneath his blankets and to not make a single sound.
My heart was hammering against my ribs as I walked back to the front door and slid the heavy metal security chain into place.
I opened the door just a few inches, leaving the chain taut.
Justin stood in the dim hallway, his expensive designer suit looking completely out of place in my run-down apartment building.
"You stole a silver frame from my father's study," he sneered, his eyes darting around my tiny living room.
"It was a gift from Mr. Christopher, Justin, and you know it," I replied, trying to keep my voice steady.
"That frame is a valuable family heirloom, and I want it back immediately," he demanded, shoving his polished leather shoe into the door gap.
I lied and told him that the glass had shattered on the way home and I had thrown the whole thing into the dumpster behind the building.
Justin’s face turned bright red with rage as he slammed his shoulder against the door.
The rusty security chain snapped instantly, sending me stumbling backward onto the hard linoleum floor.
He stepped over me and tore through my apartment, pulling out drawers and overturning my sparse furniture.
He finally spotted the empty silver frame sitting on the kitchen table and snatched it up.
He examined the broken back panel, realizing it was completely empty.
"He told me he hid it in here," Justin muttered to himself, slipping up and revealing that this was never about a sentimental heirloom.
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He glared down at me with a look of pure, unadulterated malice.
As he walked out the door, he pulled a cell phone from his pocket and told someone on the other end that the old woman knew too much and needed to be eliminated tonight.
