Chapter 9 - The Greenhouse Trap
I stepped into the greenhouse, hiding in the thick foliage near the back. The air was humid, smelling of damp earth and exotic flowers.
The glass door shattered. Marcus stepped inside, kicking the shards away. He began splashing gasoline over the wooden potting benches, laughing softly to himself.
"You can't win, Elena!" he called out, knowing I was probably watching the cameras. "Once this burns, the original documents burn with it! The jury will never see the paper trail!"
He reached for a lighter in his pocket.
"I wouldn't do that, Marcus," I said, stepping out from the shadows.
He spun around, startled, but then smiled cruelly. "Perfect. The tragic heiress dies in a terrible fire trying to save her precious flowers."
He lunged at me. But he tripped over a heavy ceramic pot—the pot holding the mother plant of the blue orchids. It shattered, sending toxic soil and jagged roots sprawling across the floor.
Marcus landed hard, his hands scraping deeply against the exposed, toxic roots.
He groaned, getting up, but suddenly froze. He looked down at his hands. The scratches were glowing an angry red.
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"What... what is this?" he stammered, his speech slurring.
"Mom's final defense mechanism," I said coldly. "The blue orchid roots are highly neurotoxic if they enter the bloodstream. You should really read up on botany, Marcus."
