Chapter 5 - The Infiltration
I stared at the heavy weapons on the table, realizing there was no turning back.
Silas handed me a sleek earpiece and a tailored black evening gown he pulled from a dry-cleaning bag.
"If we are crashing a billionaire's engagement party, you need to look like you belong there," he instructed.
An hour later, I stepped out of Silas's armored SUV wearing the stunning dress and a diamond necklace.
The Hale family mansion was illuminated with thousands of twinkling Christmas lights, looking like a perfect holiday postcard.
I walked confidently past the armed security guards at the front gate, flashing a fake invitation Silas had forged.
I stepped into the grand ballroom, instantly surrounded by the city's wealthiest elites drinking expensive champagne.
I spotted my father standing near the grand staircase, nervously checking his diamond watch.
Ethan was whispering urgently to a group of dangerous-looking men wearing tailored gray suits.
I grabbed a glass of champagne and slipped quietly past the crowd toward the upstairs private quarters.
I needed to find Madison and secure the biometric ring before the midnight transfer.
I pushed open the door to the master suite and found my mother standing by a large mirror.
She turned around and gasped, dropping her crystal wine glass onto the plush carpet.
"Claire, what are you doing back here looking like that?" she hissed angrily.
"I know about the forty million dollars, Mom," I said coldly, locking the bedroom door.
Her arrogant face completely drained of color as she backed away from me.
"You don't understand what kind of danger we are in," she whispered frantically.
She moved toward a heavy wall safe hidden behind a large portrait of our family.
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"Your father and I didn't kick you out just because you were a disappointment," she confessed, her hands shaking violently.
"We forged your signature on all the stolen syndicate accounts so you would take the fall and go to federal prison instead of us."
