Chapter 2 - The Trap in the Lobby
The atmosphere in the locked lobby turned instantly deadly.
"Julian, have you lost your mind?!" Nathaniel demanded, his voice echoing off the marble pillars. "This is treason! This is my company!"
"It was your company, Nathaniel," Julian replied smoothly, unbuttoning his suit jacket. "While you were wallowing in self-pity over your lost daughter, I built alliances with the board. They know you're broken. They know you're unfit to lead."
Julian's two personal guards—broad-shouldered men with military haircuts and hidden shoulder holsters—lunged forward. One grabbed Nathaniel’s arm, attempting to restrain him, while the other reached for me.
"Get your hands off him!" I screamed, using all the force in my small body to swing my heavy, patched backpack right into the guard's face. The corner of my hard metal lunchbox struck him right across the cheekbone.
The guard grunted, stumbling back in surprise.
"Ruby, behind me!" Nathaniel shouted. Despite his silver hair and age, the billionaire reacted with surprising speed. He struck the guard holding his arm with a sharp elbow to the ribs, breaking free from his grip, and grabbed my arm, pulling me toward the private executive elevator bank behind the front desk.
"Stop them!" Julian screamed, his smooth composure vanishing into pure rage. "Don't let them leave this lobby!"
The company security guards hired by the building looked confused, hesitant to attack their own CEO. But Julian’s personal mercenary team didn't hesitate. They drew short stun-batons from under their coats and surged forward.
Nathaniel slammed his master security badge against the scanner of the private glass elevator. The doors slid open instantly. He shoved me inside, stepped in after me, and hit the button for the penthouse floor before scanning his thumb on the biometric panel.
"Override code: Alpha-One!" Nathaniel barked into the elevator's voice receiver.
The elevator doors began to slide shut. Julian sprinted toward us, his face twisted in fury, reaching his hand out to block the closing doors.
"You won't leave this building alive, Nathaniel!" Julian shouted through the narrow gap right before the heavy doors sealed completely.
The elevator shot upward, the glass walls offering a dizzying view of the city as we accelerated rapidly past forty floors.
My legs gave out, and I collapsed onto the carpeted floor of the elevator, clutching my backpack and the wallet to my chest. My whole body was shaking so violently I couldn't catch my breath.
"Shh, it's alright, little one. It's alright," Nathaniel said gently, dropping to his knees beside me once again. He took his handkerchief and gently wiped the sweat and dust from my forehead. "You were so brave. What did you say your name was?"
"Ruby," I whispered, my voice trembling. "Ruby Vance."
Nathaniel smiled, a soft, tearful smile that made his eyes wrinkle at the corners. "Ruby... a precious gem. That sounds just like something my Clara would name her daughter."
"Is... is my mom really your daughter?" I asked, looking down at my faded dress. "Why did she tell me my grandfather died before I was born?"
Nathaniel sighed, a heavy, painful sound filled with years of heartbreak. "Because Julian made her believe it. Twelve years ago, Clara was twenty years old. She was kind, gentle, and hated the cutthroat corporate world. Julian was my second-in-command. He must have fabricated documents, made her think I was ashamed of her, or threatened her life to force her out of the city. I looked for her everywhere, Ruby. Every single day."
"She cried every night," I confessed, my eyes filling with tears as I thought of my mom sitting at our small kitchen table, staring at unpaid bills. "She works so hard, Mr. Graves. She never bought new clothes for herself. Everything she makes goes to buy food for me."
"I know, baby. I know," Nathaniel said softly, his voice thick with emotion. "And her pain ends today. I swear it on my life."
PING.
The elevator came to a sudden halt on the 60th floor—the top executive floor of Graves Tower. But instead of opening into a bright, quiet hallway, the floor was plunged into darkness.
The red emergency lights flashed above us, and a loud alarm began to blare throughout the shaft.
"System lock down initiated," an automated electronic voice boomed over the speakers. "Executive access suspended by Order of the Board."
The elevator doors opened slowly. Standing in the darkened corridor were four armed guards dressed in dark tactical uniforms, their weapons trained directly on the elevator doors.
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And behind them, speaking through a wall-mounted intercom, was Julian’s voice, cold and triumphant.
"Did you really think the master elevator would work during a board coup, Nathaniel?" Julian laughed through the speaker. "You walked right into my cage."
