Chapter 9: The Meeting After Closing
The heavy glass doors of Vance Holdings were locked when I arrived at 9:00 PM, but a security guard in a sharp black suit was waiting by the side entrance. He didn't say a word, just nodded toward the private elevator and swiped a card that sent the car gliding upward in absolute silence.
The top-floor office was dimly lit, save for the amber glow of city lights stretching out across the rain-slicked skyline. Julian Vance stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows, swirling a glass of dark amber scotch in his hand. He had discarded his suit jacket; his black shirt sleeves were rolled up to his forearms, revealing strong, corded muscles and a gold watch that caught the dim light.
"You have a lot of nerve coming back here alone, Miss Hayes," Julian said without turning around. "Especially after your little reconnaissance mission through my files yesterday."
"I didn't come to steal anything tonight, Mr. Vance," I said, stopping ten feet away from his desk and keeping my posture rigid. "I came to tell you that your expedited zoning variance is built on a fraudulent safety report. I talked to the city planning commission today."
Julian turned slowly, a faint, sardonic smile playing at the corners of his dark beard. He took a slow sip of his drink before setting it down on the glass desktop. "You're remarkably persistent, Clara. Most people in your position would have taken the buyout and started looking for a new job in the suburbs."
"Most people don't care about what this restaurant means to the neighborhood," I replied, stepping closer to the edge of his desk. "You think you can buy up every brick and mortar between here and the river just because your name is on a dozen foundation boards. But you can't erase history with a checkbook."
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Julian walked around the desk, stopping just close enough that I could catch the scent of cedar and expensive cologne. His dark eyes searched my face, lingering for a fraction of a second on the faint trace of bruising near my left eye.
"You think this is about real estate, don't you?" Julian asked quietly, his voice losing its corporate edge and dropping into something far more personal. "You think I'm just another vulture looking to pave over a memory."
