Chapter 6 - The Vault of Sins
The alliance with Julian was like walking on a razor blade. Over the next few days, Lyra returned to her duties as the invisible maid, scrubbing floors and polishing silver, but the dynamic had shifted. Behind closed doors, in Julian’s private suite, they plotted treason.
The ledger was safe, hidden in a waterproof bag submerged in the toilet tank of Lyra’s basement bathroom—the last place anyone would look.
But Silas was not a stupid man. By Tuesday, he had realized the ledger was missing.
The Manor descended into absolute madness. Silas fired his head of security on the spot. Armed guards tore the house apart, tossing guest rooms and interrogating staff. The maids were lined up in the courtyard in the freezing rain while Silas paced before them like a caged tiger.
"Someone in this house is a thief," Silas roared, his face purple with rage. "No one leaves. No one calls the outside world. Until my property is returned, you are all prisoners."
Mrs. Vance, eager to prove her loyalty, began conducting brutal interrogations. She targeted the weakest staff members, threatening to hand them over to the police for imaginary crimes if they didn't confess.
Lyra knew it was only a matter of time before the net tightened around her. She needed a distraction. She needed a scapegoat.
That night, Lyra slipped into Mrs. Vance’s private quarters while the housekeeper was busy terrorizing the kitchen staff. Lyra didn't plant the ledger, of course. That was too valuable. Instead, she planted a stack of offshore bearer bonds she had taken from the vault during the masquerade gala, hiding them beneath Mrs. Vance's mattress.
She then used an encrypted line on her burner phone to send an anonymous tip to Silas's personal email.
Check the mattress of your most loyal dog.
The next morning, the scream echoed through the entire east wing. Silas’s guards dragged Mrs. Vance out of her quarters, throwing her to the marble floor in front of Silas.
"Sir, I swear! I don't know how they got there!" Mrs. Vance sobbed, her severe facade completely shattered.
Silas looked down at her with pure disgust. "Twenty years of service, Vance. And you steal from me in my own home."
"It's a setup! Please!"
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"Get her out of my sight," Silas commanded. The guards dragged the screaming woman away.
Lyra stood in the corner, holding a feather duster, her expression completely blank. She had eliminated her primary obstacle and bought herself time. But as she looked up, she saw Julian watching her from the balcony. He gave her a slow, mocking wink. The game was accelerating, and the stakes were now life and death.
