Chapter 2 - Rain on the Glass.
The black car moved through downtown traffic while rain crawled across the windows in silver streams.
Evelyn sat perfectly still in the back seat, but the muscles in her hand had locked around the flash drive.
The woman on the phone was Nora Vance, an investigative attorney who had spent three years trying to prove that Adrian Vale's charity empire was built on stolen money and ruined lives.
Nora had never sounded frightened before.
That frightened Evelyn more than Adrian's hand on her shoulder.
"What happened?"
Nora lowered her voice.
"The files you copied are only one part of it."
"I saw the ledgers."
"You saw what they wanted you to see."
Evelyn looked at the driver through the partition.
His name was Daniel Cho, a former police investigator who had quietly joined Nora's team after his own corruption case disappeared inside the Vale Foundation.
Daniel met Evelyn's eyes in the mirror.
"We're being followed."
Evelyn turned slightly.
Two dark SUVs had entered the avenue behind them.
Their headlights remained the same distance apart through three consecutive turns.
Adrian had reacted faster than she expected.
"Take the river route."
Daniel nodded.
The car accelerated beneath a line of glowing signs, neon colors sliding across Evelyn's face.
Nora continued speaking.
"There was a second archive on Adrian's private server."
"I couldn't reach it."
"Someone did."
Evelyn's stomach tightened.
"Who?"
"A guest inside the gala sent me a message six minutes ago."
Evelyn pictured the ballroom full of frozen faces.
Some had looked shocked when Adrian fell.
Others had looked afraid.
One woman in a silver gown had looked almost relieved.
"What did the message say?"
Nora hesitated.
"It said, 'She took the wrong drive.'"
Evelyn looked down at the black plastic device in her palm.
"That's impossible."
"Then it gave me an address."
Daniel turned hard onto a lower roadway near the river.
The first SUV followed.
The second disappeared behind a truck.
Evelyn leaned forward.
"Where is the address?"
"Vale Tower."
Evelyn almost laughed.
"That's Adrian's headquarters."
"Not the public floors."
Nora sent an image to Evelyn's phone.
A blueprint appeared on the screen.
The highlighted location was beneath the tower, two levels below the parking garage.
A room was marked only with the letter M.
Evelyn stared at it.
"What does M mean?"
"I don't know."
A burst of white light filled the rear window.
The SUV behind them had moved closer.
Daniel swerved onto an access ramp.
The car rocked, but Evelyn remained upright.
She put the drive into a small metal case and slid it beneath the seat.
"If they stop us, don't let them take that case."
Daniel gave a humorless smile.
"I wasn't planning to."
The SUV closed the distance again.
Then Nora said something that made Evelyn forget the vehicle behind them.
"Evelyn, the anonymous guest knew your full name."
"Everyone in that room knew my name."
"Not the one you use now."
Evelyn's face changed for the first time.
Nora continued.
"The message used the name Evelyn Mercer."
The name had been buried for twelve years.
Adrian did not know it.
At least, Evelyn had believed he did not.
She looked at the rain-dark city beyond the glass.
"Change of plan."
Daniel waited.
"Where are we going?"
May you like
Evelyn stared at the blueprint marked with the single letter M.
"Vale Tower."
