The iron gates of the Grimes estate were twice the height of a man and black as pitch. Ashton stood before them, the wind whipping her loose hair across her face. She wore a grey hoodie and jeans, stripped of makeup, clutching the book to her chest like a shield.
She pressed the intercom button. The metal was cold under her finger.
"State your business," a voice crackled. It wasn't human; it was the flat, bored tone of private security.
"I have something for Mr. Grimes," Ashton said. "Regarding the 1920 Keynesian manuscript."
"Mr. Grimes is not accepting visitors. Leave it at the gate."
Ashton didn't move. She looked up at the camera mounted on the stone pillar. She held the book up, turning it so the spine was visible. A flicker of memory surfaced-her grandfather, smelling of pipe tobacco and old books, patiently explaining the theories scribbled in its margins. He had groomed her to take over a financial empire, not to be cast out of it. That knowledge was the one thing they couldn't freeze or foreclose on. Then, she looked directly into the lens and mouthed a single phrase: Liquidity Trap.
It was a gamble. A massive one. She was betting that Isadore, a known micromanager, monitored his own perimeter feeds when he was in the study.
Ten seconds passed. The silence stretched, heavy and suffocating.
Then, a heavy mechanical groan vibrated through the ground. The gates began to swing inward.
Ashton exhaled, a small puff of white in the chill air. She walked up the long, gravel driveway. The estate was immaculate-manicured hedges, sharp lines, a main house that looked more like a museum than a home. It was cold. It lacked life.
A butler met her at the heavy oak doors. He patted her down with professional detachment, checking her pockets, her waistband. He found nothing but a cheap lip balm.
"This way," he said.
He led her down a hallway lined with monochromatic art. He opened a set of double doors and stepped aside.
The study was cavernous. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves lined every wall. In the center of the room, behind a desk that looked like a slab of obsidian, sat Isadore Grimes.
He didn't look up. He was signing documents, his pen moving with fluid, brutal efficiency.
Ashton walked to the center of the room and stopped. She didn't speak. She knew men like Isadore. They viewed silence as a power play. If she spoke first, she lost.
The grandfather clock in the corner ticked. One minute. Two. Five.
Ashton's legs began to ache, but she locked her knees and stared at a point on the wall behind him.
Finally, Isadore capped his pen. The click was loud in the quiet room. He looked up. His eyes were colder than the photos. They dissected her, layer by layer.
"Miss Harmon," he said. His voice was deep, devoid of warmth. "That notebook better be authentic."
Ashton stepped forward and placed the book on the edge of his desk. She kept her hand on the cover. "It is. But I'm not here to sell it."
Isadore leaned back, the leather of his chair creaking. "You want an invite to the gala? Or are you here to beg for your ex-boyfriend?"
"I don't care about Carter," Ashton said, her voice steady. "And I don't want your money. I need access to your library. Two hours. That's the price."
Isadore blinked. It was the only sign of surprise he gave. "You want to read?"
"I'm writing a thesis on market volatility. This book," she tapped the cover, "is the only source material I can't find digitally. I know you have the rest of the collection."
Isadore stood up. He was tall, imposing, wearing a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, revealing forearms that were unexpectedly muscular for a man who pushed paper. He walked around the desk and picked up the notebook.
He flipped through the pages, his eyes scanning the handwritten notes. He nodded, once.
"If you make a sound," he said, not looking at her, "or if you touch anything other than the books in section C, I will have you removed."
"Understood, Mr. Grimes."
He went back to his chair and ignored her completely.
Ashton took a seat in the corner armchair. She opened a random book, but her eyes weren't on the text. She watched him in the reflection of the window glass.
He worked like a machine. Every thirty minutes, he drank water. Every time his phone buzzed with a specific ringtone-Charity's-he let it ring three times before answering.
"What?" he answered one call. His tone was clipped. "No, I don't care about the flower arrangements. Do whatever you want."
He hung up without saying goodbye.
Ashton turned a page, her heart beating a little faster. He didn't love Charity. He barely tolerated her.
Outside, the sky turned a bruised purple. Thunder rumbled, low and menacing. A storm was coming.
Ashton looked at the rain starting to lash against the glass. A plan formed in her mind. It was dangerous, but she was already in the lion's den. She might as well see if she could stay for dinner.
