Chapter 12
She held her rabbit in both hands and babbled at passing buses.
The Lakeshore Trust building stood near the river, wedged between two newer towers. Its windows were dusty. A faded stone sign remained above the entrance.
The street was busy enough to feel safe.
Vincent parked across from it.
“We go in together,” I said.
“Yes.”
“No one takes the key.”
“Yes.”
“And if I say we leave—”
“We leave.”
I looked at him.
“You remembered.”
“I remember everything you say.”
The reply unsettled me for reasons that had nothing to do with fear.
Marco met us near a side entrance.
“The front is sealed,” he said. “This door was opened recently.”
“How recently?” Vincent asked.
“Within the last week.”
The key grew cold in my hand.
Someone had been here.
Marco checked the corridor before allowing us inside.
The lobby smelled of dust and old stone. Sunlight entered through tall windows, illuminating sheets of plastic draped over abandoned desks.
Our footsteps echoed.
The basement stairs were behind a locked service door.
The silver key did not fit.
We continued down using a modern access card Marco had acquired from the property manager.
At the bottom, a narrow hallway led to a row of metal doors.
Each bore a small engraved number.
The final door had no number.
Only a faded flower.
Belladonna.
I stopped.
Vincent stood beside me.
“You do it,” he said.
My hand shook as I placed the key into the lock.
For one terrible moment, it would not turn.
Then something clicked.
The door opened inward.
The room beyond was smaller than I expected.
No stacks of money.
No hidden weapons.
Only shelves.
Boxes.
Filing cabinets.
And a wooden desk beneath a single hanging light.
Dust covered almost everything.
Almost.
One chair had been moved recently.
A clean line marked the floor where its legs had scraped through the dust.
Someone else had searched the room.
Marco examined the shelves.
“Several boxes are missing.”
“How can you tell?” I asked.
“Dust outlines.”
Vincent moved to the desk.
There were no drawers. Only a flat surface and a brass reading lamp.
I walked along the nearest shelf.
May you like
Most boxes were labeled with dates and company names.
Then I saw one marked CROSS.
