Chapter 10 - The Man Above Clara
When they returned to Altamar, Javier was gone.
His office was empty.
His phone sat on the desk.
So did his coat.
Security footage showed him entering the executive elevator alone.
The camera inside the elevator went black for forty-three seconds.
When it returned, the elevator was empty.
Alba stared at the screen. “People don’t disappear from elevators.”
“No,” Álvaro said. “They leave through places cameras don’t see.”
Elena remembered an old service passage connecting the executive floor to the parking garage.
They found Javier there, sitting on the concrete beside his car.
Alive.
Bleeding from the forehead.
He had been hit once from behind.
His briefcase was gone.
Inside it had been the original board authorization for the Lianhua transaction.
And one more thing.
“The family-office records,” Javier said from the ambulance stretcher.
He had pulled them after seeing Arturo’s notebook.
The Salcedo Family Office had not been dormant.
Who had power of attorney?
Javier’s older sister, Isabel Salcedo.
Chairwoman of Altamar’s board.
The room went silent.
Clara, still under supervision, finally spoke.
“Now you understand.”
Javier looked at her. “You knew.”
“I knew enough to be afraid.”
“You altered the contracts.”
“I was ordered to maintain the parallel versions.”
“By Isabel?”
Clara’s mouth tightened.
“She told me it was defensive architecture. Protection against hostile partners.”
Elena snapped, “You knew the clauses could transfer assets.”
“I knew what would happen if I refused.”
She looked toward Alba.
“Ask your mother why she disappeared instead of going to police.”
Alba turned.
Elena whispered, “Because they had photographs of you walking to school.”
Clara nodded.
“And they had my son’s address.”
Then Javier’s phone, still on his desk, rang.
Caller ID:
ISABEL SALCEDO.
Alba reached for it.
Elena caught her hand.
But Javier said, “Answer.”
Alba put the call on speaker.
May you like
Isabel’s voice was calm.
“Tell Elena the countdown cannot be stopped.”
