Chapter 4: Someone Inside the Executive Office
For several seconds, nobody spoke.
The air conditioner hummed above us. Somewhere outside the family lounge, a child laughed near the fountain.
Inside the room, my father stood motionless, holding his phone against his ear.
"Daniel," he finally said, "I want you to repeat what you just told me.""
Daniel's voice sounded shaky.
"Your daughter's name was on a visitor notification list. Victoria received it this morning. She knew you might be coming to the mall.""
Dad narrowed his eyes.
"Why would my daughter's name be on an executive notification list?""
"I don't know, sir.""
"Who sent it?""
Another pause.
"Mr. Carter, I think you should come down here.""
Dad ended the call.
I stared at him.
"Dad, what's happening?""
He looked at me for a moment.
"Someone in my executive office knew you were coming.""
"How?""
"I don't know yet.""
I glanced at Tasha, who was sitting quietly on the sofa.
"Could Victoria have been waiting for me?""
Dad didn't answer immediately.
Then he shook his head.
"I don't want to assume anything until we have evidence.""
He turned toward Robert.
"Get the security team ready. Nobody leaves the building with company equipment or records until we've established what has happened. Nobody gets threatened or physically restrained. Everything must be documented.""
Robert nodded.
"Yes, sir.""
Dad looked at me.
"Stay here with Elijah.""
"No.""
"Naomi.""
"Dad, somebody may have deliberately targeted me. I'm not going to sit in a lounge while everyone else decides what happened.""
He studied my face.
I knew that expression.
It was the same one he wore when I was sixteen and insisted on attending a school debate after a girl had publicly humiliated me.
He never liked seeing me upset.
But he had also taught me never to confuse protection with silence.
Finally, he nodded.
"All right. But you'll have Robert beside you.""
I adjusted Elijah's blanket.
"Deal.""
The security office was on the third floor.
When we arrived, Daniel Price was standing beside a conference table. His gray uniform was slightly wrinkled, and his forehead glistened with sweat.
A laptop bag sat on the table.
Two security supervisors stood near the door.
Victoria was there too.
Her pink suit looked immaculate, but her confidence had disappeared.
She was pacing beside a filing cabinet, speaking rapidly into her phone.
"I told you not to call me again," she whispered.
When she noticed us, she immediately ended the call.
Dad walked in.
"Who were you speaking to?""
Victoria straightened.
"Nobody important.""
"That's interesting. Because we're currently investigating someone important.""
She forced a smile.
"Mr. Carter, I think this situation has gotten completely out of hand.""
Dad pulled out a chair.
"Then sit down and explain it.""
Victoria remained standing.
Daniel looked toward her.
She gave him a sharp glance.
"Daniel, don't say anything without legal representation.""
Dad turned to her.
"Are you instructing an employee to withhold information during an internal investigation?""
"I'm protecting the company.""
"No. You're protecting yourself.""
Victoria's mouth tightened.
Dad gestured toward Daniel.
"You said my daughter's name appeared on a list. Show me.""
Daniel slowly opened his laptop.
"I received an email this morning.""
He clicked several folders.
A message appeared.
*SUBJECT: VIP FAMILY ARRIVAL — SPECIAL HANDLING*
The sender was listed as:
*Executive Relations — Sterling Crown.*
I frowned.
"VIP family arrival?""
Daniel scrolled down.
The message contained a photograph of me.
It was an ordinary picture taken outside my father's office building two days earlier.
I was holding Elijah's infant carrier while talking to my father's driver.
Below the photograph was a short instruction.
*Subject: Naomi Carter. Expected at Sterling Crown between 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. Please ensure no disruption to executive family movements. Operations manager to be informed.*
I stared at the screen.
"Why would they send my picture to mall security?""
Dad's face hardened.
"That's what we're going to find out.""
Victoria immediately stepped forward.
"I never received that email.""
Daniel turned toward her.
"Yes, you did. You replied.""
Victoria's eyes widened.
"Excuse me?""
He opened the response.
Her message appeared.
*Understood. I'll handle it personally.*
Dad read it twice.
Then he looked at Victoria.
"Explain.""
She folded her arms.
"It was a routine executive notification. I assumed she was some kind of VIP visitor.""
"And you decided to slap her?""
"She was obstructing the entrance.""
"That's not what the video shows.""
Victoria raised her voice.
"With respect, sir, you weren't there!""
The room fell silent.
Dad slowly stood.
"You're correct. I wasn't there. But my daughter was.
Your security cameras were there. Your assistant was there. And apparently, several hundred shoppers were there.""
He leaned forward.
"So perhaps you should stop explaining what happened and start explaining why you think you have the authority to put your hands on a customer.""
Victoria's lips trembled.
"I didn't mean to hurt her.""
I finally spoke.
"You didn't even check whether my baby was okay.""
She turned toward me.
"I was trying to manage a difficult situation.""
I looked directly into her eyes.
"You slapped me while I was holding my newborn. Then you watched people laugh while your assistant threatened to remove me.""
Victoria said nothing.
Dad closed the laptop.
"Robert, preserve this email and its original metadata. I want the sender traced.""
Robert nodded.
"Already in progress.""
Then Daniel cleared his throat.
"There's another issue.""
Dad looked at him.
"What?""
Daniel opened another folder.
"This is the disruption report Tasha mentioned.""
A spreadsheet appeared.
There were dozens of entries.
Names.
Descriptions.
Dates.
Security actions.
Some entries were marked with red labels.
*LOW-VALUE CUSTOMER.*
*POTENTIAL IMAGE RISK.*
*REMOVE FROM PREMIUM ZONE.*
I felt sick.
One entry read:
*EVELYN BROOKS — 72 — REPEATED PRESENCE NEAR DESIGNER STORES — ESCORT OUT.*
Another read:
*JAMES WASHINGTON — FAMILY WITH STROLLER — UNDESIRABLE APPEARANCE — MONITOR.*
Dad stared at the screen.
"Who created this?""
Daniel swallowed.
"Victoria.""
Victoria slammed her palm against the table.
"That document is confidential!""
Dad turned slowly.
"Confidential?""
"It's an internal operations document!""
"Then why are you afraid of us seeing it?""
She looked toward the door.
For the first time, she seemed to understand that she had lost control of the room.
Then Daniel clicked another tab.
A separate document opened.
It was titled:
*PROJECT CLEAN IMAGE.*
Underneath were several names.
The first belonged to Victoria Hayes.
The second belonged to Daniel Price.
The third was unfamiliar.
*ADRIAN VALE — EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, CARTER MERIDIAN GROUP.*
Dad stopped breathing for a moment.
I had heard that name before.
Adrian Vale was one of my father's most trusted executives.
He had worked beside Dad for almost twelve years.
He had attended family celebrations. He had sent flowers when Elijah was born.
And according to the document, he was involved in the same operation as Victoria.
Dad stared at the screen.
"Robert.""
"Yes, sir?""
"Find Adrian.""
Robert nodded.
But before he could move, Dad's phone vibrated.
A message appeared from an unknown number.
*STOP LOOKING INTO THIS. YOUR DAUGHTER IS NOT THE ONLY PERSON WHO CAN BE HURT.*
Dad read it.
Then he slowly placed the phone on the table.
I looked at him.
"Dad?""
He didn't answer.
Instead, he looked at Robert.
"Lock down the executive records. Preserve everything.""
Robert nodded.
Dad's next words were barely above a whisper.
"Because this is no longer about a mall manager.""
He looked at the screen again.
"It's about someone inside my own company.""
And then the security office door opened.
A woman in a navy business suit stepped inside carrying a thick folder.
"Mr. Carter," she said.
"I'm sorry, but you need to see this before you confront Adrian.""
Dad recognized her immediately.
It was his personal assistant, Margaret Lewis.
May you like
She looked terrified.
"There's something in your daughter's employee file that shouldn't exist.""