Caroline followed Finch through the glass breezeway connecting the main mansion to the medical annex. Outside, a violent summer thunderstorm lashed against the reinforced glass panes, the rain driven sideways by the wind.
The annex was a different world. The lavish marble and velvet were gone, replaced by blindingly stark white walls. The heavy, sickening smell of clinical sedatives hung thick in the air.
They reached the end of the corridor. A massive, soundproof metal door blocked their path. A single, narrow observation window was set into the steel.
Finch swiped a keycard. The electronic lock hissed, releasing the pressure seal, and the heavy door swung inward.
Caroline's hands shook uncontrollably. She forced her stiff legs to move and stepped inside.
There was no furniture. The walls were entirely padded with soft white foam. However, the floor was not uniformly soft; it consisted of durable, textured vinyl tiles designed for easy cleaning, with only a thin, removable therapeutic pad in the center. In the far corner, a frail woman in a hospital gown was curled into a tight ball.
It was Lorelei. Her hair was a matted mess. She was clutching a dirty, torn ragdoll to her chest, rocking back and forth while humming a broken, off-key lullaby.
Tears instantly flooded Caroline's eyes. She ran across the room and dropped to her knees beside her mother.
"Mom?" Caroline whispered, her voice breaking.
Lorelei stopped rocking. She slowly turned her head. Her hollow, sunken eyes locked onto Caroline's face.
For a second, nothing happened. Then, absolute terror exploded in Lorelei's eyes.
She scrambled backward, pressing herself flat against the foam wall. She shielded the ragdoll with her body and let out a piercing, agonizing scream. "Devil! Get away! Don't take my baby!"
Caroline's heart ripped in half. She reached out a trembling hand. "Mom, it's me. It's Caroline."
Lorelei slapped Caroline's hand away with violent force. She began clawing frantically at the seam where the thin floor pad met the harder vinyl tile. Her fingernails cracked and bled. "The fire! The fire! Help me!" she shrieked.
The word "fire" triggered a horrific memory in Caroline's brain. The apartment fire from her childhood. The one the police called an accident.
Caroline's sadness instantly hardened into lethal rage. She spun around and glared at Finch, who was standing by the door.
"What did you people do to her?!" Caroline demanded. "Why is she talking about the fire?"
Finch looked down, avoiding her eyes. "It was a tragic accident, Miss Bishop. Her mind couldn't handle the trauma."
"Liar!" Caroline screamed. She stood up and marched toward him. "I'm going to find out exactly what happened. And I will destroy whoever did this to her."
A cold, mocking laugh echoed from the doorway.
Graydon stood in the metal doorframe, his massive frame blocking the exit. His right hand, bearing the dark, scabbed-over bite mark, was tucked casually into his trouser pocket—a deliberate display of nonchalance that masked any discomfort.
"You're a broke, bottom-feeding cleaner," Graydon sneered. "You couldn't destroy a paper bag, let alone the Ross family."
Caroline's blood boiled. She stormed out of the room, grabbing the heavy metal door and pulling it shut behind her so her mother wouldn't hear them fight.
She stood in the stark white hallway, tilting her head back to glare directly into Graydon's eyes. "I don't care if it kills me. I will burn this place to the ground."
Graydon stared down at her. The sheer, unhinged ferocity in her eyes caught him off guard. This wasn't the look of a gold digger. It was the look of a martyr.
He pushed the thought away. He stepped closer, his presence suffocating. "This annex is restricted. You are banned from stepping foot in here ever again."
"She is my mother!" Caroline yelled. "You have no right to keep me from her!"
Graydon's absolute need for control snapped. He reached out with his uninjured left hand and grabbed Caroline's wrist. Despite the bandage visible on his right, his left-handed grip was like a steel trap, crushing her delicate bones.
He yanked her hard against his chest. The impact knocked the breath out of her. The air in the narrow hallway grew thick with his oppressive presence, a predator's chilling aura that promised absolute violence.
"In this house," Graydon whispered, his voice a lethal rumble against her lips, "my word is the law."
Pain shot up Caroline's arm, but she refused to flinch. She pushed up onto her toes, bringing her mouth right next to his ear.
"If you ban me from this room," she whispered back, her voice dripping with venom, "I will call the Wall Street Journal and tell them exactly how you assaulted a woman in the back of your Maybach."
Graydon's pupils dilated. A terrifying, murderous rage contorted his face. He shoved her away so hard she stumbled back into the wall.
He turned to Finch. "Call the security team. Throw this bitch into the storm."
