The ride back to the estate was silent. The rain had started, drumming against the roof of the Rolls Royce.
"Name your price," Ingram said suddenly.
Elmira looked away from the window. "Excuse me?"
"You saved her. You proved my mother incompetent. You solidified my position." Ingram looked at her. "The million-dollar settlement is off the table. You have leverage now. What do you want?"
Elmira's mind raced. She touched the signet ring. She had the key. Now she needed the location.
"I want access to the library," she said.
Ingram's eyes narrowed. "The library? Why?"
"Your grandfather's private collection," Elmira lied. "It contains legal and financial archives from the Gilded Age. First editions. I want to study them."
It was a risky lie. The library was also where the safe was hidden.
Ingram studied her. He was calculating risk.
"Fine," he said. "But there is a condition."
"What?"
"You report to me every night. On Victoria's health. In person."
"I can email you."
"No." Ingram leaned back. "I want to see your face when you report. I want to know if you're hiding anything."
He was keeping her on a leash.
"Deal," Elmira said.
Ingram reached into his briefcase. He pulled out a tablet and handed it to her.
"Also, we need to fix your public profile."
Elmira looked at the screen. It was a press release draft. It had her photo. It listed her as a reclusive prodigy, a former recipient of the Holmes scholarship who had continued her postgraduate research in private, under the family's direct patronage.
"My PR team drafted it," Ingram said casually. "It explains your sudden appearance. If anyone asks, you didn't just read books. You were a private scholar, focused on your work."
Elmira stared at him. He had just handed her the perfect cover. He thought he was protecting his reputation. He was actually protecting her spycraft.
"You're packaging me like a new asset."
"I protect my assets," Ingram said. "I can't have the press thinking I associate with unknowns."
"Thank you, Mr. Holmes," she said, the word dripping with sarcasm.
"You're welcome, Ms. Moran."
The car turned through the massive iron gates. Holmes Manor rose out of the mist, a sprawling gothic beast of stone and ivy.
Elmira swallowed. She was inside the fortress.
