The lift doors slid open on Floor Sixteen, and the temperature changed immediately. Unlike the buzzing upper levels, this wing was still, cold, and lined with shelves that swallowed sound. The Records Wing always felt like a place where time held its breath, but tonight the silence felt sharper. Thicker. Watchful.
Celine stepped out first, scanning the hallway. "She is here. Room Sixteen B. Alone."
John nodded once. He moved forward, Rita and Morgan flanking him while Celine followed at the rear. Their footsteps echoed faintly in the long corridor, each step measured, each movement deliberate.
Rita whispered, "What is the plan?"
John did not slow down. "We do not approach her directly. We observe her reaction to seeing me. Elias is calm, but Maeve is not. She will show something. A twitch. A hesitation. A mistake."
Morgan chuckled under his breath. "People fall apart when they meet the wrong boss on the wrong night."
Celine smirked. "And tonight is definitely the wrong night."
They reached the corner. Room Sixteen B was ahead. A faint light leaked under the door. Papers rustled softly inside. Someone worked with full concentration.
John stopped the team at the edge of the hallway.
"Watch."
He did not knock. He pushed the door open with calm authority and stepped inside.
Maeve Calder jerked violently, her hand snapping back from the stack of files as if she had been burned. For a moment, she froze. Her sharp eyes flicked from John to Morgan to Rita to Celine.
Then she straightened too quickly, offering a stiff smile.
"Chief Raymond. I was not expecting anyone from your floor tonight."
John scanned the room. "You work late."
"I always have," she replied. "Your father trusted me to manage the older records. I honour that trust."
Rita watched her closely.
Morgan folded his arms.
Celine leaned against the doorframe, silent.
Maeve's fingers twitched slightly. A small movement. Almost invisible. But John saw it.
He walked further into the room.
"What are you working on?"
Maeve hesitated a fraction too long. "Inventory updates. Nothing unusual."
He approached her desk slowly. She stepped aside, trying to look relaxed but failing. Her breath hitched once, barely noticeable.
John lifted one of the files. The paper smelled faintly of dust and ink. Old. But the edge wear did not match the folder's outer layer.
Rita whispered behind him, "She is lying."
John set the file down. "Maeve."
She swallowed. "Yes, Chief Raymond."
He looked into her eyes.
"What did you do last night?"
She blinked. "I went home."
"No," John said calmly. "You did not."
Her breath caught.
Morgan stepped forward. "Someone entered the archive room with legacy access."
Maeve's fingers curled.
Celine added, "Only six people have that access. And you are one of them."
Maeve's lips parted slightly. She took a step back.
John stepped forward.
"Try again," he said quietly.
Her throat bobbed.
"I… I came down to check the inventory. That is all."
But her eyes flicked left toward the back shelf.
John followed that flick with precise attention. "What is over there?"
Maeve's shoulders tensed. "Nothing important."
"Move," John said.
She did not move.
Morgan moved her.
He stepped past her, pulled the shelf slightly, and revealed a hidden compartment pressed tightly against the wall.
Rita inhaled sharply. "What is that?"
Celine pushed forward. "A storage pocket. Harold used these to hide sensitive material."
Maeve whispered, "Please. Do not touch that."
John met her eyes. "Why not?"
Maeve hesitated. Then the fear arrived. Real fear. Not guilt. Not panic. But terror.
"You do not understand," she said. "If you open that compartment, you will start something your father never wanted you to finish."
John stepped closer. "You think I came this far to stop at a warning."
Maeve's voice trembled. "Chief Raymond. I am trying to protect you."
Morgan laughed once, humourless. "Everyone is suddenly trying to protect him. Funny timing."
Celine knelt and examined the compartment. "It is locked with a twelve-point magnetic seal. Legacy prototype. Only someone with Master Access can open it."
"Who has Master Access?" Rita asked.
John answered, his voice turning colder.
"Only three people in this building ever had it. Harold. The Benefactor. And… one other person he never named."
Maeve pressed her hand against her mouth. "Do not open it. Please. If you open it, everything will change."
John lowered himself beside Celine.
"Good," he said softly. "I want everything to change."
He placed his palm on the metallic surface.
The compartment scanned him.
A soft chime sounded.
Recognition.
The seal was released.
Maeve let out a strangled sound. "No."
The compartment slid open.
Inside was a single object.
A black ledger book.
Old. Bound by hand.
Marked with a crest that was not the Raymond crest… or the Circle's symbol.
Rita whispered, "What is that?"
Celine's eyes widened. "No. It cannot be."
Morgan stepped closer. "Celine. What are we looking at?"
Celine backed up slowly, her voice barely above a whisper. "This is the Founders Ledger."
Morgan blinked. "Meaning what?"
Celine met John's eyes.
"It is the original record of the first members who built The Crest. Not the modern Circle. The true founders. The ones whose secrets Harold spent his life hiding from everyone."
Maeve collapsed into her chair. "This is why I begged you not to open it."
John lifted the ledger carefully. It was heavier than it looked, as if carrying years of buried truth.
Rita whispered, "Is this what the Circle is trying to find?"
Celine nodded. "Yes. This book contains everything. The original power structure. The old alliances. The true story behind who built The Crest. And what they were protecting."
Morgan asked quietly, "What exactly were they protecting?"
Celine answered without hesitation.
"A secret that could destroy the Circle and every person loyal to them."
Maeve shook her head, panic in her voice. "Chief Raymond. You do not understand. That book does not just expose the Circle. It exposes every betrayal tied to The Crest. Including the people who helped the Benefactor. Including the ones who killed Harold."
Rita stiffened. "What are you saying?"
Maeve looked John directly in the eyes.
"Your father did not die from the Benefactor's attack. He died because someone inside the Circle ordered it."
John froze.
"Who?" he said softly.
Maeve closed her eyes.
"The name is in the ledger."
The room fell into complete silence.
Then John spoke, his voice cold enough to shatter glass.
"Then we read it."
Maeve whispered. "Once you do… nothing will ever be the same."
John opened the ledger.
The first page revealed names written in old ink.
Rita leaned forward. "What does it say?"
John read the title.
"Founders Circle. Primary Members. Line of Sovereigns."
Celine whispered, "Line of what?"
John turned the page.
And his eyes stopped.
The first name on the list was one he knew.
One he trusted.
One who should never have been there.
Morgan saw his face tighten. "John… what is it?"
John closed the ledger slowly.
His voice was a quiet blade.
"The traitor is closer than we thought."