Chapter 8 - The Video Log
Ten minutes later, the main security office on the ground floor was filled with high-definition screens displaying multiple angles of the estate.
Leo and the second enforcer had been disarmed, bound with heavy tactical zip-ties, and locked in the basement holding cell.
Dante plugged the black flash drive into the primary console.
A video window popped up on the center forty-inch monitor. The timestamp read: Yesterday – 10:05 AM.
The camera, positioned high inside the antique clock frame, captured a crystal-clear, wide-angle view of the second-floor hallway outside Adrian's private study.
At 10:07 AM, the video showed Vincent Moretti walking down the hall. He wore his gray tailored suit and his custom Italian dress shoes. In his right hand, he carried a crystal pitcher filled with ice water.
He looked around nervously, opened the door to Adrian's study, and stepped inside.
Ninety seconds later, Vincent stepped back out into the hallway.
The pitcher in his hand was half-empty.
As he closed the door, he pulled a small white glass vial from his jacket pocket, walked over to a potted fern near the stairs, and dropped the vial into the soil.
He pulled a peppermint lozenge from his pocket, popped it into his mouth, and walked calmly toward his private office.
Ten minutes later, the video showed Adrian collapsing near his desk, followed by five-year-old Sophia walking into the frame with her blue crayon palm.
Dante slammed his fist onto the wooden desk, shattering a plastic pen holder.
"That miserable bastard," Dante growled, his face dark with rage. "He poisoned his own brother for the chairman seat."
"Where is Vincent now?" Elena asked, standing beside Dante with Titan resting his head against her hip.
"He's in the formal dining room," a guard reported from the doorway. "He's meeting with three members of the commission board, trying to convince them to vote him in as temporary boss while Adrian is incapacitated."
May you like
Dante pulled his sidearm from his holster, checking the chamber with a sharp click.
"Let's go interrupt his meeting," Dante said.
