Chapter 1 - THE WOMAN HE WAS SUPPOSED TO REJECT
“Why do you want this job?”
Claire Bennett had prepared a dozen answers to that question.
She could have talked about her qualifications, her graduate degree, or the years she had spent restoring historical documents in poorly funded archives.
Instead, she told the truth.
“Because someone is destroying history, Mr. Mercer. And I think your foundation is next.”
Ethan Mercer stopped moving.
Outside his twenty-second-floor office, rain hammered the windows overlooking downtown Boston.
For several seconds, the only sound came from the antique clock behind his desk.
“That’s an unusual answer,” he said.
“It’s an unusual situation.”
“Explain.”
Claire opened her leather portfolio and removed a photograph.
It showed a handwritten letter dated October 14, 1923.
“This was supposedly restored by Whitmore Historical Services six months ago. It appeared in your foundation’s preliminary exhibition catalog last week.”
Ethan studied the photograph.
“And?”
“The letter is a forgery.”
His expression hardened.
“That’s a serious accusation.”
“I know.”
“Do you have proof?”
Claire placed a second photograph beside the first.
“The ink is wrong. The paper is wrong. And whoever created this document copied a transcription error from a reference book published in 1987.”
Ethan leaned forward.
“How can you be certain?”
“Because I worked on the original.”
The silence that followed felt heavier than the storm outside.
Ethan looked from the photograph to Claire.
“Where?”
“At the Ashford Historical Archive in Vermont. Three years ago.”
“Who authorized the restoration?”
“A private collector.”
“Name?”
Claire hesitated.
“Arthur Whitmore.”
Ethan’s jaw tightened.
Arthur Whitmore had died eighteen months earlier.
His estate had donated the collection to the Northbridge Cultural Foundation.
At least, that was what Ethan had been told.
“Why didn’t you report this earlier?” he asked.
“I tried.”
“To whom?”
“Your foundation’s executive director. Victoria Hale.”
Ethan’s eyes narrowed.
“What happened?”
“She told me I was mistaken.”
“And you accepted that?”
“No. I sent a detailed report.”
“When?”
“Four months ago.”
Ethan turned toward his computer.
He searched his email.
Nothing.
He searched the foundation’s internal correspondence.
Still nothing.
Claire watched his expression change.
“I sent it by certified mail,” she said quietly. “Someone signed for it.”
“Who?”
Claire removed a folded receipt.
Ethan read the signature.
Victoria Hale.
His closest professional adviser.
The woman he had trusted to oversee the foundation while he managed his development empire.
Ethan stood.
“Wait here.”
He crossed the office and opened the door.
Brooke Lawson and the other candidates were still seated outside.
Victoria stood near the reception desk, speaking into her phone.
She ended the call when she saw Ethan.
“Everything all right?”
“Cancel the remaining interviews.”
Victoria blinked.
“Excuse me?”
“I’ve made my decision.”
Her eyes moved past his shoulder toward Claire.
Then her smile disappeared.
“Ethan, perhaps we should discuss—”
“Claire Bennett is hired.”
Brooke’s mouth fell open.
Victoria went pale.
“That would be a mistake,” she said.
Ethan looked directly at her.
“Why?”
Victoria recovered quickly.
“She doesn’t have the public-facing experience we need.”
“She’s not being hired to model the paintings, Victoria.”
A receptionist coughed to hide a laugh.
Ethan continued.
“She’s being hired because she understands the collection.”
Victoria’s expression became dangerously still.
“Of course.”
Ethan returned to his office.
Claire rose from her chair.
“Mr. Mercer, I appreciate the opportunity, but I haven’t accepted anything yet.”
For the first time that morning, he smiled.
“Good. I prefer people who negotiate.”
“What exactly would my responsibilities be?”
“Conservation coordinator. Full access to the archive. Independent authority to document anything questionable. A salary of one hundred and forty thousand dollars.”
Claire nearly dropped her portfolio.
“That’s considerably more than the advertised salary.”
“I’m changing the position.”
“Why?”
“Because I suspect you’re about to save me considerably more than that.”
Claire looked at him carefully.
“You believe me?”
“I believe the evidence deserves examination.”
It was the most honest answer she had heard from an employer in years.
She extended her hand.
“Then I accept.”
Ethan shook it.
His grip was warm and steady.
Neither noticed Victoria watching through the glass wall.
But when Claire finally left the building, Victoria entered Ethan’s office without knocking.
“You hired the wrong woman,” she said.
Ethan closed his laptop.
“Careful.”
Victoria placed a document on his desk.
It was a personnel file from a conservation laboratory in Connecticut.
Across the first page, stamped in red, were the words:
TERMINATED FOR PROFESSIONAL MISCONDUCT.
The name beneath them was Claire Bennett.
Ethan stared at the file.
Victoria lowered her voice.
“She didn’t tell you why no museum in New England will hire her.”
Then she turned the page.
And Ethan saw the accusation.
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Claire Bennett had allegedly stolen a historical manuscript worth $2.8 million.
Worse, the missing manuscript belonged to the Whitmore Collection.
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