Chapter 2 - The Traitor Inside
Damon did not hesitate for a single fraction of a second.
He lunged across the space between them and slammed his fist directly into Marcus's jaw.
The heavy impact sent the massive security chief crashing backward into the wooden bookcase.
"Damon, wait, the kid is just talking nonsense!" Marcus shouted while trying to raise his hands defensively.
Damon pulled the hidden revolver from beneath his desk and aimed it squarely at the man's chest.
"My wife died in a tragic balcony collapse three years ago, Marcus," Damon snarled with lethal coldness.
"The police called it a structural failure, but you were the one who signed off on the safety inspection that very morning."
Marcus swallowed hard, his eyes darting frantically toward the door.
"Get out of my house before I put a bullet in your knee," Damon ordered in a dangerously low voice.
The disgraced security chief scrambled to his feet and ran down the hallway without looking back.
Damon lowered the weapon and turned his attention back to the trembling mother and child.
"Pack your bags right now, Naomi," Damon commanded sharply.
Naomi pulled Zuri against her chest and let out a broken sob of defeat.
"Please don't fire me, Mr. Ashford, I have absolutely nowhere else to go," she begged desperately.
"I am not firing you," Damon replied while locking the heavy study doors.
"You and Zuri are moving into the master suite on the third floor where I can keep you entirely safe."
Naomi was too stunned to argue as he escorted them up the grand staircase to the most secure wing of the mansion.
She placed her small duffel bag on the luxurious silk bedsheets and began to unpack her daughter's clothes.
At the bottom of the bag, her fingers brushed against a heavy object wrapped in a dark cloth.
Naomi pulled it out and unwrapped a sleek, black burner phone she had never seen before in her life.
May you like
The screen suddenly lit up with a terrifying text message from an unknown number.
"If you don't get that ring and bring the child to the front gate tonight, I will kill you both."
