Chapter 11 - The Trap Beneath the Ballroom.
Conrad Wren arrived at the mansion at noon without being summoned.
That alone told Damian someone inside was still feeding him information.
Conrad was seventy-two, elegant, soft-spoken, and wealthy enough to treat billionaires like impatient children.
The silver falcon on his ring flashed beneath the chandelier.
"I heard there was an incident."
Damian looked at the ring.
"Who told you?"
Conrad smiled.
"Your board is not blind."
Lucas stepped forward.
"Funny, because our security reports haven't reached the board."
Conrad's smile faded by a fraction.
Damian invited him into the ballroom.
Harper and Ella were hidden in the panic room under Mara's guard.
Martin watched through a concealed camera.
Victor stood beside Damian even though suspicion still hung between them.
"Do you remember Arthur Bell?" Damian asked.
Conrad sighed.
"A tedious man with an inflated sense of morality."
"He's alive."
The old man's eyes did not widen.
That was answer enough.
Victor moved first and blocked the ballroom doors.
Conrad looked around.
"You think this is wise?"
Damian placed Arthur's photograph on the table.
"Tell me where he is."
Conrad removed his glasses and cleaned them.
"Your father once had the same habit of demanding answers before understanding the question."
"My father is dead."
"Because he became sentimental."
Lucas's breathing changed.
Damian stepped closer.
"You ordered the crash."
Conrad smiled sadly.
"No."
"Then who did?"
"Henry ordered many things that year, including his own destruction."
Damian grabbed Conrad by the collar.
Victor pulled him back.
"Don't give him what he wants."
Conrad straightened his jacket.
"Victor always was useful."
Victor's eyes narrowed.
"You knew my father."
"I paid your father."
The room went still.
Conrad admitted Northstar Custodial had been a laundering vehicle, but claimed Henry created it to move money beyond government scrutiny.
Victor's father had handled transfers and security.
"The crash happened because Henry tried to shut it down," Conrad said.
Damian stared at him.
"And Harper?"
"I have never touched the woman."
A low metallic hum interrupted them.
The ballroom floor seam appeared beneath Conrad's shoes.
Victor shouted.
The hidden hatch opened.
Conrad fell backward but caught the edge.
Damian grabbed his wrist.
For one second, the old man's controlled expression vanished.
"Don't let go."
Damian almost laughed at the irony.
He pulled Conrad up.
The hatch remained open.
A speaker below crackled.
Arthur Bell's voice filled the ballroom.
"Conrad always did talk too much."
Harper ran in from the side corridor despite Mara's attempt to stop her.
"Arthur?"
A figure appeared at the bottom of the hatch.
Arthur Bell looked older than in the photograph, but unmistakably alive.
He raised a pistol.
"Everyone away from Conrad."
Damian stared down.
"You imprisoned Harper?"
Arthur's expression hardened.
"I tried to protect her."
Harper stepped closer to the edge.
"By leaving me tied in concrete for three days?"
"That wasn't my order."
Conrad laughed.
"There it is."
Arthur aimed upward.
"Shut up."
Conrad looked at Damian.
"You wanted the man who ordered your father's death?"
May you like
His falcon ring tapped the marble.
"He's standing under your floor.
