Chapter 5 - The Glass Staircase
The grand entrance hall of Sterling Manor was quiet as the front double doors swept open, letting in a gust of cold, rain-scented wind.
Julian Vance stepped into the foyer, removing a damp wool coat and handing it to a waiting butler. At thirty-six, Julian was handsome in a sharper, more delicate way than his brother—slick dark hair, pale skin, thin lips, and cold, restless grey eyes. He wore an expensive bespoke grey suit with a silk tie.
Julian wiped a fleck of rain from his lapel, looking around the empty hall with an artificial smile.
Julian: "Where is everyone? The party can't be over already."
Ethan stepped out from the shadow of the grand marble staircase, descending the steps with slow, deliberate authority. Elena walked two paces behind him, her face composed, her arms folded neatly behind her back.
Ethan: "The party ended early, Julian. We had a small incident in the ballroom."
Julian’s smile tightened for a split second before he forced a look of deep, brotherly concern onto his face.
Julian: "An incident? My God, Ethan... is Noah okay? I heard rumors on the drive up that something collapsed."
Ethan reached the bottom of the stairs, standing directly in front of his younger brother, towering over him by three inches.
Ethan: "Noah is fine. A maid saved his life."
Julian glanced past Ethan’s shoulder, his grey eyes lingering on Elena for a fraction of a second. A flicker of subtle annoyance passed over his features—so brief that only a trained observer would have caught it.
Julian: "Thank God. A maid, you say? Give her a generous bonus from the family account, Ethan. We can't have bad publicity surrounding the party."
Ethan reached into his pocket, pulling out the gold cufflink he had recovered from the shattered glass, holding it out between his thumb and forefinger.
Ethan: "The police are downstairs in the security room, Julian. They’re taking a statement from a man named Victor Vance."
Julian’s breath hitched faintly, his throat working as he swallowed hard, though he maintained his defensive posture.
Julian: "Victor? I... I don't know who that is."
Ethan stepped closer, his voice dropping into a register of pure, icy venom that made the room feel twenty degrees colder.
Ethan: "Victor was wearing a cufflink just like this one, Julian. Engraved with serial code 004-B. But Arthur Sterling has been in London for three days, and his set is sitting inside a vault in Manhattan."
Julian took a step back toward the open front door, his hands trembling slightly as he reached for his coat.
Julian: "Ethan, you're tired, you're stressed... you aren't making sense. If Arthur is in London, then someone else must have forged it—"
Ethan: "We checked the security footage from the Chicago hangar, Julian."
Elena stepped forward, her calm, clear voice cutting through the tension like a razor.
Elena: "Your private jet took off at six p.m. with three passengers registered on the flight manifest. One of them was Victor Vance... traveling under your personal corporate clearance code."
Julian’s face drained of every drop of color. He looked from Elena’s steady, accusing brown eyes back to his brother’s lethal hazel gaze, realizing his masterfully constructed cover story had been dismantled in less than ten minutes.
Julian: "Ethan... listen to me. You don't know the whole story. They made me do it!"
May you like
Ethan’s hand shot out like a lightning bolt, grabbing Julian by his lapels and lifting him completely off his feet, slamming him hard against the thick marble column beside the door.
Ethan: "Who made you target my son?!"
