Chapter 6
1300words
Sebastian didn't leave Crescent Harbor; he settled in a seaside hotel, like an inescapable shadow, once again enveloping Elsie's life.
He dispatched men to seemingly casually stand guard around the gallery, calling it "necessary protection."
Elsie didn't strongly oppose this; she knew perfectly well that it was both protection and surveillance, Sebastian's way of controlling the situation.
Between them, there was far from trust, more like strangers walking together on the edge of a cliff, wary of each other, yet temporarily dependent.
The so-called "cooperation," in the first few days, was more like a cautious exchange of information. Conversations usually took place after the gallery closed and Leo had gone to bed. Under the warm yellow light, the atmosphere was always tense. Elsie provided photos of the anonymous letter and sketches of the Eldritch Crest. When Sebastian saw the crest, his eyes sharpened for a moment, but he didn't say much, only promising to use his channels to investigate. In exchange, he revealed information about several powerful uncles and aunts within the Deville Family who were eyeing the inheritance rights, suggesting that Emily might have unwittingly become a victim of power struggles. He spoke clearly and logically, but Elsie always felt he was holding something back, as if he had only lifted a corner of the curtain. She couldn't fully trust this "family feud" narrative, always feeling there was a deeper whirlpool behind it.
That afternoon, Sebastian came to the gallery again, his face more somber than usual.
He waved his hand, gesturing for Calvin who was waiting outside the door to go rest at the coffee shop on the corner. Calvin nodded respectfully and turned to leave.
But in the moment he turned, Elsie caught his gaze as it seemed to sweep across the glass display window of the gallery, incredibly quickly and discreetly. The emotion that flashed momentarily in his eyes was indescribable, making her heart inexplicably tighten.
"There's been progress," Sebastian didn't bother with pleasantries and walked directly to the counter, keeping his voice very low. "I found that Dr. Hammond received a payment from an anonymous account in the Rhineland Principality one week before the incident. The payment route was complex, but ultimately pointed to an offshore shell company." He paused, observing Elsie's reaction. "That company's background, after several layers of concealment, has some subtle, but not untraceable connections to my aunt, who has supposedly dedicated herself to charity work and appears to be uninvolved in worldly affairs."
Aunt? That woman who always had a gentle smile and elegant manners at family gatherings?
Elsie's heart sank. This seemed to confirm part of Sebastian's claims.
"We need to take action." Sebastian's voice grew even lower. "Hammond has a rarely used safe deposit box at the Central Bank in the old town district of Crescent Harbor. I suspect there might be something hidden inside, perhaps evidence, perhaps something that could explain why he was silenced. After the bank closes tonight, I have a way to get in. You need to come with me."
"Why me?" Elsie immediately asked vigilantly. For this kind of risky business, he could easily send more professional and trustworthy subordinates.
"Because only you," Sebastian's gaze was sharp, "know most clearly which details might be directly related to Emily, which seemingly insignificant clues hide key information behind them. We need to make judgments in the shortest time possible. Outsiders can't do this." His reasoning sounded reasonable, but the doubts in Elsie's heart had not dissipated. This might also be a test, testing her value, as well as her loyalty.
The night was deep.
Elsie entrusted the sleeping Leo to the trustworthy old neighbor next door, and only after repeated instructions did she follow Sebastian with great unease.
An inconspicuous black sedan was parked at the entrance of the alley, with Calvin sitting silently in the driver's seat. The journey was silent, with only the faint sound of wheels pressing against the cobblestone road.
The operation initially proceeded surprisingly smoothly. Sebastian seemed to know the structure of this ancient bank and its security rotation inside out. They avoided the main surveillance points and crept into the underground vault area like ghosts. The air was cold, carrying the scent of metal and dust. Safe deposit box number 1073 stood there silently.
Sebastian took out his specialized tools and began working with practiced movements.
Elsie held her breath, staring intently at the cold door of the box, her heart filled with both hope of finding crucial evidence and an inexplicable uneasiness.
The lock made a soft "click," and Sebastian gripped the handle, preparing to pull it open—
At that very moment, a sharp yet not too loud alarm sounded somewhere inside the bank! Not the kind that would alert the entire building, but a more targeted, localized unauthorized entry alarm!
"What's happening?!" Elsie gasped in horror, her heart violently contracting.
Sebastian's face changed drastically. Moving as fast as lightning, he slammed the just barely cracked safe door shut with a "bang" and grabbed Elsie's wrist. "It's a trap! Let's go!"
They retreated hastily along their entry path, their footsteps echoing in the empty corridor, sounding particularly jarring.
Just as they rushed out through the side door they had used as an entrance and darted into a dark, lightless alley beside it, they heard car engines in the distance, with beams of headlights sweeping across the alley entrance.
Sebastian suddenly yanked Elsie into a recessed doorway, their bodies pressed tightly against the cold, damp wall, shrinking into the shadows, almost holding their breath.
The headlights slowly drove past without stopping. The sense of imminent danger seemed to temporarily dissipate.
But Elsie's heart was beating more frantically than when she was fleeing earlier.
A trap? How could it be a trap? The time, location, and target of this operation were only known to her, Sebastian, and... Calvin, who was responsible for the extraction!
An ice-cold thought surged uncontrollably into her mind.
She abruptly pulled her hand away from Sebastian's grasp, staring intently at his sharply defined profile in the dim light.
"Only the three of us knew we would come here tonight, that we would crack that safe." Her voice trembled slightly with fear and anger. "Was it you? Or was it your 'absolutely reliable' assistant who has followed you for ten years?"
Sebastian's face, hidden in the shadows, was unreadable, but he didn't immediately deny it.
Silence spread through the narrow, damp space, so heavy it was suffocating. After several seconds, he finally spoke in a low voice, with something desperately suppressed in his tone: "Calvin... he's been through a lot."
"Many things?" Elsie almost let out a cold laugh, questioning with a suppressed voice. "Enough for him to betray you? I just saw something wrong in his eyes! Our whereabouts have been repeatedly anticipated by opponents, Sebastian! If I'm not the problem, then where is the leak? Could it be that you yourself leaked your own plans?"
Sebastian still didn't answer directly.
The weak streetlight from outside the alley shone in at an angle, outlining his tense jawline and tightly pressed lips.
That fragile trust, built on quicksand to begin with, cracked open with a visible fissure under the terrifying trap they had just experienced and the sharp, direct accusation of the moment.
Who exactly was the traitor? How was information being leaked so precisely time after time? This question, like a cold poisonous snake, coiled between the two of them, making every step forward filled with unknown dangers and deeper distrust.
Elsie knew that before finding the mole hiding in the shadows, she had to re-examine and be doubly vigilant about any dependence she had on the man beside her.
