Chapter 11 - The Gala Trap.
The drive to St. Arden took twenty-eight minutes.
Charlotte spent every one of them staring at the photograph of her father.
Thomas Vale had aged badly.
His hair was almost white.
His shoulders looked thinner.
But the eyes were the same.
Daniel drove while Miriam contacted a detective she trusted outside the precinct handling the hotel case.
Vanessa sat beside Charlotte in the back seat.
No one spoke to her.
Finally she broke the silence.
"My father is at the board gala tonight."
Charlotte looked at her.
"The emergency meeting is a gala?"
"The Solmere Foundation dinner was already scheduled."
"Victor moved the vote into the private session afterward."
Charlotte understood immediately.
Hundreds of donors, cameras, and executives would already be in one place.
Victor could remove her ownership rights while presenting himself publicly as the grieving guardian of the Vale legacy.
"He planned this before I came back."
Vanessa nodded.
"He plans everything before anyone else knows there is a game."
St. Arden appeared beyond a row of bare trees.
It was less a hospital than a private estate surrounded by fences.
Two police cars were parked near the entrance.
Victor's sedan sat abandoned beside them.
Charlotte got out before Daniel fully stopped.
A detective hurried toward them.
"Ms. Vale?"
"Where is my father?"
The detective hesitated.
Charlotte's heart dropped.
"Where is he?"
"The patient registered as Timothy Voss was removed from the facility twenty minutes ago."
"By whom?"
"Two men carrying transfer documents."
Miriam cursed.
"Victor."
The detective shook his head.
"Victor Hale is not here."
Charlotte stared at his abandoned car.
"Then why is that?"
"We think he wanted us to believe he came here."
Another trap.
Daniel's phone buzzed.
A photograph arrived from an unknown number.
He showed it to Charlotte.
Thomas Vale sat in a wheelchair inside a dark vehicle.
A digital clock behind him showed 10:38 p.m.
Beneath the photograph was a message.
BRING THE LEDGER TO THE SOLMERE GALA.
COME ALONE.
Charlotte felt Vanessa lean closer.
Then a second message appeared.
AND WEAR SOMETHING APPROPRIATE THIS TIME.
Charlotte's jaw clenched.
Victor wanted spectacle.
He understood the Solmere better than anyone.
In that building, perception moved faster than facts.
A rumor whispered beside a champagne tower could erase a career before breakfast.
If Charlotte returned bruised and desperate while Victor stood beneath Eleanor's portrait looking dignified, half the battle would be won before either of them spoke.
He wanted her back in the hotel where he controlled the staff, cameras, and board.
He wanted her humiliated twice.
Daniel shook his head.
"You are not going alone."
Charlotte looked toward the city lights in the distance.
"He has my father."
"And he wants the only physical ledger we have."
"Then he'll get a ledger."
Miriam looked at her.
"What are you thinking?"
Charlotte handed Daniel the original.
"Make copies."
She turned to Vanessa.
"You said your family's vote matters."
Vanessa nodded slowly.
"Then tonight you choose what your name is worth."
Forty minutes later, Charlotte entered the Solmere through the service entrance wearing a borrowed black evening dress.
Her bruises were still visible.
She refused makeup.
The ballroom above the lobby glittered with hundreds of guests.
Victor stood onstage beneath a giant portrait of Eleanor Vale.
He smiled when Charlotte appeared at the rear doors.
Then the entire room turned to look at her.
Victor lifted his champagne glass.
"Ladies and gentlemen."
May you like
His smile widened.
"The missing heir has finally joined us."
