The Secret Behind the Emerald
Chapter 03 - The Secret Behind the Emerald
The analog recording proved Vanessa had taken the necklace, but it did not explain why Eleanor’s velvet box was already empty. Claire and Julian carried the recorder through the hidden passage to Eleanor’s sitting room. The matriarch watched the footage without surprise.
“I knew she would take it,” Eleanor said.
Julian stared at his grandmother. “You set a trap?”
Eleanor admitted she had suspected Marcus and Vanessa of stealing from the hospital trust. Weeks earlier, she replaced the Hartwell Emerald with a museum-quality replica and hid the real necklace. She planned to expose them during the gala, but Marcus discovered the test and planted the antique clasp in Claire’s purse.
“The necklace Vanessa is wearing is the replica,” Eleanor explained. “The real emerald contains something more valuable than the stone.”
Inside its center setting was a miniature memory chip placed there by Julian’s grandfather. It held the original trust documents for Vale House, including a clause stating that the estate would pass into public charitable ownership if any family officer misused hospital funds.
Vanessa believed the chip could erase that clause and give her control of the property. Marcus believed it contained access keys to hidden accounts. Neither realized Eleanor had already removed it.
Claire felt a chill. “Where is the chip now?”
Eleanor reached for the burgundy box, then stopped. A narrow cut marked the silk lining. Someone had opened the secret compartment beneath it.
Marcus appeared in the doorway with two security guards.
“Looking for this?” he asked, holding a black memory card.
He ordered Julian to restore his administrator status and authorize the shell-company transfer. If Julian refused, Marcus would destroy the card and release edited footage showing Claire stealing the necklace.
Vanessa entered behind him, no longer smiling. She had just learned Marcus intended to keep all twelve million dollars and leave her as the only visible suspect.
“You promised we would own this place together,” she said.
Marcus laughed. “You were useful because everyone underestimated you.”
Vanessa tore the replica necklace from her throat and threw it at him. One guard flinched. Julian knocked the other man’s weapon aside while Claire pulled Eleanor behind a stone column.
Marcus escaped into the service corridor with the memory card.
A moment later, the estate app returned on Julian’s phone. It showed Marcus heading toward the underground archive, where the original trust records were stored.
Then a countdown appeared beneath the feed.
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ARCHIVE PURGE: 09:59.
In less than ten minutes, every document connecting the estate to the hospital would be destroyed.
