Chapter 22 - Building CThe old Meridian plant stood beyond a chain-link fence at the edge of the industrial district.
Rain had turned the access road into a strip of black mud. The buildings rose from the fog like abandoned ships, their windows broken, their walls streaked with rust.
Noah wanted to come.
I said no.
He reminded me that his mother had hidden evidence in a bracelet, a map, and a birthday archive.
Then he said, “You keep telling me I have to learn to recognize danger. You can't teach me by locking every door.”
I hated how much that sounded like Claire.
So I brought him.
Building C had no sign.
Only a faded number painted above a steel entrance.
Inside, the air smelled of dust, wet concrete, and old chemicals.
Our flashlights swept over empty offices and collapsed shelving.
At the rear of the building, we found a locked room.
The key was in the envelope.
Inside was a long table covered in documents protected beneath plastic sheets.
Photographs.
Blueprints.
Bank ledgers.
And a framed picture of my father standing beside a man I had never seen.
The man wore a dark suit and held a silver compass.
The same symbol Claire had used for years.
Noah leaned over the table.
“That's Mom's compass.”
I picked up a folder labeled NORTHSTAR AGREEMENT — 1987.
The first page carried my father's signature.
The second carried another.
Adrian Vale.
Below the signatures was a clause:
In the event of death, incapacity, or breach of fiduciary duty, control of all Meridian assets shall revert to Northstar's appointed successor.
“Appointed successor,” I murmured.
A sound came from the hallway.
Footsteps.
Noah turned.
The door handle moved.
I shoved the folder inside my jacket and killed the flashlight.
The door opened.
A woman stepped into the room.
She was in her late sixties, elegant in a charcoal coat, with silver hair pulled into a neat knot.
She looked at Noah first.
Then at me.
And smiled with unmistakable sadness.
“Daniel Carter,” she said. “You look exactly like your father.”
“Who are you?”
“My name is Eleanor Vale.”
May you like
She glanced at the folder beneath my jacket.
“And I believe my brother left something that belongs to your family.”
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