Chapter 5 - The Locked Box
"Put the gun down, Thorne."
A new voice cut through the heavy rain.
Arthur stepped out from the shadows of the garden.
He was holding a hunting rifle, and it was aimed straight at the bodyguard’s head.
Thorne laughed, but he didn’t lower his weapon.
"You don't want to do this, Mr. Sterling," Thorne warned.
"Your wife pays me very well to handle pests."
"She isn't paying you tonight," Arthur said, cocking the rifle.
"Drop it."
Thorne hesitated, then slowly lowered his pistol, tossing it into the mud.
Arthur kept the rifle aimed at him.
"Get off my property," Arthur commanded.
"If I ever see you near my daughter again, I won't hesitate."
Thorne glared at Arthur, then looked down at the metal lockbox in the boy's hands.
"You have no idea what you're stepping into, Arthur," Thorne sneered.
With a final threatening look, the bodyguard disappeared into the storm.
Arthur dropped to his knees in the mud, breathing heavily.
He looked at Clara, then at the terrified boy.
"Let's get inside," Arthur said, his voice trembling.
They went directly to Arthur's private study and locked the heavy doors.
The boy, shivering in his wet clothes, placed the muddy lockbox on the mahogany desk.
"My name is Leo," the boy said quietly.
"My mother is Maria."
Arthur closed his eyes as if the name brought him physical pain.
"I know," Arthur whispered.
He took a heavy brass letter opener and pried the rusted lock off the box.
It broke with a sharp snap.
Arthur opened the lid.
Inside were stacks of printed photographs and a single folded document.
Clara leaned forward on her crutches to look.
The photos showed Evelyn and Dr. Vance meeting secretly in dark restaurants, exchanging thick envelopes of cash.
But it was the document that made Arthur collapse into his leather chair.
It was a copy of Clara’s mother’s official autopsy report.
The cause of death was not listed as blunt force trauma from a car crash.
The box for "Homicide by Lethal Injection" was clearly checked in red ink.
Clara gasped, dropping one of her crutches.
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Before anyone could speak, Arthur’s cell phone rang on the desk.
The caller ID displayed a single name: Dr. Vance.
