Chapter 2 - The Hidden Ledger
I reacted purely on instinct and drove my elbow sharply backward into my attacker's ribs.
The person grunted in pain and instantly released their iron grip on my face.
I spun around with my pepper spray raised, but I froze when I saw the elderly estate gardener holding his side.
He frantically put a dirty finger to his lips and motioned for me to follow him into the shadows.
We sprinted silently into the massive glass greenhouse just as the back door of the mansion burst open.
I could see the bright beam of Daniel's flashlight sweeping aggressively across the dark lawn.
The gardener pulled me behind a thick row of tall fern plants and handed me a small metal key.
He whispered that Emily had begged him to give this to me if she could not make it outside.
I asked him what the key belonged to.
He explained it opened a hidden floor safe beneath the loose floorboards in Daniel's childhood bedroom.
The gardener told me the watery oatmeal Emily ate was heavily laced with dangerous sedatives.
He said the family was legally documenting her deteriorating mental state to steal her inheritance.
My investigative mind immediately connected the dark dots of their sinister financial plot.
We heard the heavy crunch of expensive leather shoes stepping onto the gravel path right outside the greenhouse.
Daniel called out my name in a sickeningly sweet voice that made my skin crawl.
He said he knew I was out there because he recognized the smell of my expensive perfume.
The heavy glass door of the greenhouse slowly creaked open.
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The beam of his flashlight cut through the humid air and landed directly on my muddy boots.
Daniel smiled warmly as he raised a silver handgun and pointed it right at my chest.
