Chapter 1 - The Sterling Protocol
“He has another family, Sebastian,” I whispered into the phone.
My voice was terrifyingly calm, completely stripped of any warmth.
The silence on the other end of the line was absolute.
It was the kind of heavy, suffocating silence that always preceded a catastrophic explosion.
“Are you in the lobby of the St. Regis?” Sebastian finally asked.
His voice was a low, deadly rumble that vibrated through the speaker.
“Yes,” I replied, keeping my eyes locked on Vanessa.
“Keep Lily close to you and do not move,” Sebastian ordered.
“I am pulling the plug on everything.”
The line went dead with a sharp click.
I lowered my phone, sliding it back into the pocket of my faded trench coat.
Vanessa crossed her arms, a smug smile stretching across her heavily painted lips.
“Did your little support system tell you to take a hike?” she mocked.
“Because if you don’t leave right now, I am calling security to physically remove you.”
I didn't blink.
“Call them,” I challenged her softly.
Vanessa rolled her eyes and signaled to two massive security guards standing near the velvet ropes.
“Excuse me, gentlemen,” Vanessa called out, her voice dripping with fake authority.
“This woman is trespassing and harassing the VIP guests.”
The two guards immediately began marching toward me, their expressions hardened.
I knelt down again, pulling Lily into a tight embrace to shield her from the incoming conflict.
“Momma, are we in trouble?” Lily whispered, her tiny hands clutching the clay handprint.
“No, sweetheart,” I promised, kissing her forehead.
“We are perfectly safe.”
Before the guards could even reach out to grab my arm, the head of security’s radio suddenly erupted with frantic static.
“Code red at the main entrance!” a panicked voice screamed through the radio.
“Stand down all lobby personnel immediately!”
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The two guards froze in their tracks, looking at each other in total confusion.
Vanessa’s smug smile began to falter.
