Chapter 4: The Gunshot in the Service Corridor
The gunshot came from the direction of the service elevators.
For half a second, the ballroom stood frozen beneath the chandeliers. Then two hundred guests erupted into screams.
Admiral Mercer grabbed my arm and pulled me behind a marble pillar as the hotel security team rushed toward the doors.
“Everyone get down!”” he shouted.
“Move away from the windows!””
Chairs toppled. Champagne glasses shattered. A woman in a silver gown crawled beneath a table, clutching her handbag against her chest.
I barely heard any of it.
My eyes were fixed on my father.
Richard Harrington wasn't running.
He wasn't even looking toward the source of the gunshot.
He was staring at Evan.
My brother had already taken out his phone again.
“Who did you contact?”” I demanded.
He shoved the device into his pocket.
“Now is not the time.””
“Someone just fired a gun!””
“And screaming about it won't help anyone.””
His voice was unnaturally calm.
I remembered the text on his screen.
She has the drive. Get it before—
Before what?
Before the witness could talk?
Before I could expose our father?
Admiral Mercer pressed a hand to his earpiece.
“Security, report. What's your location?””
A crackling voice answered.
“Service corridor. One injured individual. Suspected shooter fled through the loading entrance. Police have been notified.””
“Is the witness alive?”” I asked.
The admiral glanced at me.
“We don't know yet.””
I started toward the doors.
He caught my shoulder.
“Captain, wait for the security team.””
“That man may be the only person who can explain why Daniel is alive.””
Mercer's expression tightened.
“And if someone is trying to kill him, walking straight into the corridor without knowing what's waiting there would be reckless.””
“I've been reckless before.””
“I know,” he said quietly.
“That's why I don't intend to let you do it again.””
For a moment, the noise around us faded.
He wasn't speaking to a frightened woman whose blouse had been torn in front of a ballroom.
He was speaking to the officer who had dragged him out of a burning compartment while the Arabian Sea swallowed everything around them.
I nodded reluctantly.
Two security officers approached, one carrying a medical kit.
“Admiral, we've secured the main hallway. Police are two minutes out.””
“Take Captain Harrington with you. Stay together.””
My father immediately stepped forward.
“I'm coming too.””
“No,” Mercer replied.
Dad blinked.
“Excuse me?””
“You're staying here until the authorities arrive.””
“This is my hotel event!””
“Then you should have no difficulty cooperating with the people investigating a shooting connected to your guest list.””
A few feet away, Celeste had risen from behind a table. Her mascara streaked beneath her eyes.
“Dad, what's happening?”” she demanded.
“Why is everyone acting like we're criminals?””
Richard ignored her.
Instead, he looked at me.
“Caroline, give me the flash drive.””
I stopped walking.
“What?””
“The device in your purse. If it contains confidential corporate records, it needs to be secured properly.””
“By you?””
“I'm trying to protect this family.””
I stared at him.
“You didn't protect me when Celeste tore my clothes. You didn't protect me when I was recovering in a military hospital. You didn't protect me when you told everyone I had run away because I was a failure.””
His jaw tightened.
“Those matters are irrelevant.””
“No. They're exactly why I'm not handing you anything.””
Evan suddenly moved toward me.
Mercer stepped between us so quickly that my brother stopped short.
“Take one more step,” the admiral warned, “and you'll explain your intentions to the police.””
Evan raised his hands.
“I'm not threatening her.””
“Then give her room.””
For the first time that evening, Evan obeyed without arguing.
I followed the security officers into the corridor.
The music from the ballroom faded behind us, replaced by the shrill beeping of an elevator and the distant wail of approaching sirens.
Near the service doors, a hotel employee sat against the wall with a towel pressed to his forehead. Blood seeped between his fingers.
A paramedic knelt beside him.
“Where's the witness?”” I asked.
The paramedic looked up.
“Who?””
“The man they brought here. He was attacked earlier.””
The security supervisor pointed toward a service room.
“Inside. But you need to prepare yourself.””
I pushed through the door.
The former employee lay on the floor beside a metal shelving unit. His name was Martin Cole. I recognized him from the encrypted video calls we'd shared over the past three weeks.
His shirt was soaked with blood.
I dropped to my knees.
“Martin. It's Caroline.””
His eyelids fluttered.
“Captain?””
“I'm here. Help is coming.””
He grabbed my wrist with surprising strength.
“Did you get the files?””
“Yes.””
“Don't trust your father.””
“I already don't.””
He tried to laugh but coughed instead.
“It's worse than you think.””
I leaned closer.
“Tell me about Daniel.””
Martin's eyes shifted toward the doorway.
Then he whispered something that made my blood run cold.
“Daniel isn't the only one who survived that night.””
Before I could ask what he meant, he pressed a small brass key into my palm.
“Locker 214,” he gasped.
“Central station. Everything's there. The original orders.
The names. The money.””
“Who ordered the attack, Martin?””
His fingers tightened around mine.
“Your father didn't just supply the equipment.””
He swallowed painfully.
“He signed the order that sent Daniel's team into that corridor.””
My chest constricted.
Behind me, a security officer shouted for the paramedics.
Martin looked into my eyes one final time.
“Captain, the person who fired that shot wasn't trying to silence me.””
His lips trembled.
“They were trying to stop you from learning who was really in command.””
His hand went limp.
The monitor beside the paramedic began sounding an alarm.
I stared at the brass key in my palm.
Then my phone vibrated.
A message from an unknown number appeared on the screen.
*LEAVE THE HOTEL NOW. YOUR BROTHER HAS ALREADY SOLD YOU OUT.*
I looked toward the corridor.
Evan stood at the far end, speaking to a uniformed police officer.
When he noticed me watching, he slipped something into the officer's hand.
Something small.
May you like
Something silver.
The same size as the flash drive in my purse.
