Chapter 4 - Shadows in the Tower
By sunrise, Logan Pierce had signed an executive contract as Head of Personal Security and Special Investigations for Vanessa Whitmore, with a salary that would ensure his son Ethan would never wear tight shoes again.
His first act was firing Vanessa’s entire private security team.
“They were either incompetent or bought,” Logan stated as he paced through Vanessa’s penthouse apartment high above Bellhaven. “Whoever put that device in Layla’s ear six years ago had direct access to her medical appointments, her home, and Whitmore BioTech’s restricted laboratories.”
Layla sat on the plush living room rug, wearing a pair of noise-dampening headphones that allowed her to slowly adjust to the overwhelming rush of sounds—the hum of the refrigerator, the pitter-patter of rain against the window, the soft tick of a wall clock. Every new sound brought a wide, joyful smile to her face.
Logan sat down beside her, pulling a small wooden box from his pocket. He opened it to reveal a set of carved wooden fish. Layla’s eyes lit up, and she immediately began arranging them.
“She likes you,” Vanessa said quietly, standing behind them with two cups of coffee. She handed one to Logan. “She hasn’t let anyone outside the family close to her in years.”
“Children know when someone is listening to them, Ms. Whitmore,” Logan replied softly. “Even when they can’t hear.”
“Call me Vanessa,” she said, taking a sip. Her expression turned deadly serious. “I ran a trace on the SoundShield protocol this morning. That technology was classified four years before Layla was born. Only three people had master-level clearance to access those prototypes.”
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“Who?” Logan asked.
“Dr. Julian Vance, our Chief Medical Officer, who was also the primary consultant who recommended all thirteen of Layla’s specialists,” Vanessa said, her knuckles turning white. “My late father’s long-time business partner, Arthur Pendelton. And my uncle... Richard Whitmore.”
