"Stay here," Gustaf ordered. He went up to the VIP balcony to watch the carnage.
Alys stayed on the floor. The lights dimmed. The giant screen above the stage lit up.
"And now," the announcer boomed, "A tribute to our debutante, Brisa Flores."
Alys slipped her hand into her clutch and pressed the button on her phone, triggering the script she'd embedded in the hotel's AV system.
The screen flickered.
The baby photos disappeared.
In their place, screenshots appeared. Emails.
Subject: Harvard Admissions.
Body: The wire transfer of $500k is confirmed. The rowing photos are photoshopped as requested.
The crowd gasped.
Next image. A medical report. Rhinoplasty. Chin implant. Liposuction.
Next. A video of Brisa screaming at a maid, calling her racial slurs.
Brisa screamed on stage. "Turn it off! Turn it off!"
But the system was locked.
Hector Flores saw Alys. He saw the phone in her hand.
He charged through the crowd. "You little bitch!"
He raised his hand. A heavy gold ring glinted on his finger.
Alys didn't flinch. She waited until the hand was inches from her face.
She didn't move to strike him. Instead, she held up her phone, its screen facing him. It displayed a live feed of his offshore bank account, the balance rapidly draining to zero. A single line of text pulsed beneath it: TOUCH HER AND IT'S GONE FOREVER.
Hector's arm froze mid-air. His face went from purple rage to ashen white. He stared at the screen, then at Alys, his mouth opening and closing like a fish.
Alys threw herself backward, landing on the floor, covering her face.
"Don't hit me!" she cried out-a silent scream.
From the balcony, Gustaf watched. He didn't see a strike. He saw Hector freeze for no apparent reason. He saw Alys's phone. He saw the absolute terror on Hector's face. He saw a weapon far more potent than a fist.
"Clever girl," he whispered.
Elena dragged Alys into the backstage dressing room.
"You ruined everything!" Elena grabbed a pair of scissors from the vanity.
Alys stood up. She stopped slouching. She dropped the fear.
She walked toward Elena.
"Put it down, Elena," Alys said. Her voice was clear. Cold.
Elena froze. The scissors clattered to the floor. "You can speak?"
"I can do a lot of things. Like send the IRS the ledger of your Cayman Island accounts."
Elena backed up against the wall. "What do you want?"
"The truth. About that night. Who killed my mother?"
Elena's hands shook. Her eyes darted around, looking for an escape. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't you?" Alys took a step closer. "The cleaner you hired left a digital footprint. A ghost in the machine. I just need a name to attach it to."
Fear won. "I paid him in cash," Elena stammered. "He uses a proxy. A pawn shop in Queens. They call him 'The Spider'."
Alys took the information, filing it away.
She walked out into the hallway.
Gustaf was leaning against the wall.
"That was quite a performance," he said.
Alys didn't stop. She kept her face a blank mask, reverting to the mute girl.
He grabbed her arm. He pulled her close.
"That little trick with the phone. I saw it. You're the one from the cliff, aren't you? The ghost in the hospital gown."
Alys looked up at him. She didn't answer. She didn't need to. He didn't have proof, only a gut feeling. And right now, his gut feeling was her shield.
He laughed. A low, dark sound.
"We're going to have fun, wife."
