Detective Miller put the encrypted USB drive into his forensic workstation.

The monitor flashed with raw audio frequencies as the precinct technician started stripping out the background noise, but my phone vibrated on the metal desk at ten past nine the next morning.

My father’s assistant called twice before leaving a short text telling me to come to the executive floor of Charles Real Estate Headquarters on Grand Avenue.

When the elevator doors opened on the top floor at ten o’clock, the smell of polished mahogany and leather filled the quiet hallway.

Charles sat behind a huge glass desk overlooking the Pinecrest Manor skyline, wearing a tailored navy suit, his gold cufflinks gleaming in the morning sun.