Chapter 1 - The Cake on the Floor
Daniel Stellan knew something was wrong before he saw the cake.
He heard Lily crying from the dining room.
"Daddy!"
Daniel crossed the foyer in three strides.
His daughter was on her knees beside the dining table, wearing a pink birthday dress with buttercream streaked across the front. The three-tier cake he had ordered from her favorite bakery lay smashed across the hardwood floor.
Lily held a napkin in both hands and was trying to wipe frosting from the boards while she cried.
Vanessa stood over her.
Beside Vanessa stood a man Daniel had never seen before.
Tall. Dark suit. Mid-forties. Calm eyes.
"What is going on?" Daniel asked.
Vanessa turned too slowly.
"Daniel, you're home early."
He ignored her and knelt beside Lily.
"Sweetheart, stop cleaning."
Lily's lower lip shook. "Vanessa said I ruined it."
Daniel looked at the broken cake.
"Did you?"
Lily shook her head hard. "No. It fell when she moved the table."
Vanessa sighed. "She's three. She doesn't understand what happened."
Daniel lifted Lily into his arms.
"Then why was she cleaning it?"
The stranger spoke for the first time.
"Mr. Stellan, maybe this isn't the best moment."
Daniel turned.
"Who are you?"
The man reached inside his jacket slowly and handed him a card.
EVAN MERCER - MERCER RISK CONSULTING.
Daniel stared at it.
"Why is a risk consultant at my daughter's birthday party?"
Vanessa answered before Evan could.
"He's a friend of my brother's."
Evan's eyes flicked toward her.
A tiny reaction.
A lie.
Then Lily tugged his collar.
"Daddy?"
"Yeah, baby?"
She pointed at the cake.
"The man broke it first."
Daniel looked at Evan.
Evan did not deny it.
Instead, he looked toward the ceiling camera in the corner of the room.
"You should check your security system," he said quietly.
Daniel's phone buzzed.
May you like
HOME SECURITY ALERT: ADMINISTRATOR ACCESS GRANTED.
He had not granted anyone access.
