Chapter 3 - The Laughter that Shattered the Silence
The sheer absurdity of a three-year-old girl in a yellow cardigan walking like a ruthless underworld kingpin was mesmerizing. But the physical reality of being three years old quickly asserted itself.
After taking four slow, dramatic steps across the polished floor, Nora’s left foot caught the dangling end of Adrian’s oversized black silk tie. She stumbled forward, her tiny arms windmilling as she nearly pitched face-first into the cold marble.
With incredible, instinctual toddler agility, Nora caught herself on one knee, saved her small pink plastic purse from touching the floor, and immediately pushed herself back up. She didn't cry. She didn't even blink. Instead, she stood up straight, brushed off her yellow cardigan with ridiculous, adult-like seriousness, and used her tiny hands to readjust the black silk tie around her collar.
Nora looked at the floor, shook her head, and muttered in a tiny, exasperated voice:
“Unbelievable.”
A sudden, loud sound shattered the silence of the Cole estate.
HA!
Adrian Cole, who was standing near the grand arched entrance holding a leather-bound folder, suddenly burst into a genuine, deep, chest-rumbling laugh. It was not a quiet chuckle; it was a rich, uncontrollable burst of real laughter that echoed off the high ceilings and marble walls like thunder breaking through a four-year drought.
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The entire grand hall went completely, utterly silent.
Mrs. Holloway gasped aloud, her hand flying to her mouth. One of the hardened security guards actually spun around on his heel, his jaw dropping open as he stared at his boss in utter disbelief. The guards had not heard Adrian Cole laugh since before his brother James was buried in the family mausoleum. The sound was so foreign, so unexpected, that for two seconds, the security detail looked as though they believed an intruder had breached the estate.
