Chapter 16 - The Warehouse Ledger
Daniel and Samuel arrived at the abandoned warehouse just before sunrise.
From the road, the building looked forgotten. Broken windows, rusted loading docks, weeds pushing through cracked concrete—it was exactly the kind of place people ignored.
But Daniel noticed something different.
Fresh tire tracks.
Someone had visited recently.
The heavy entrance gate hung slightly open.
Inside, dust covered most of the floor except for a narrow path leading toward a locked office at the back of the building.
Samuel photographed everything before touching a single object.
"No assumptions," he said quietly. "Only evidence."
Daniel nodded.
Years overseas had taught him patience.
Inside the office, they found filing cabinets stripped almost completely empty.
Almost.
One drawer had jammed before whoever cleaned the place could remove its contents.
Samuel forced it open.
Inside lay a weathered accounting ledger.
No company logo.
No invoices.
Just dates.
Vehicle numbers.
And initials.
L.C.
Again.
Month after month.
Year after year.
Beside many entries appeared another code:
Property Maintenance
Daniel frowned.
"No one spends this much money maintaining one house."
Samuel continued turning pages.
Near the middle of the ledger, a folded receipt slipped onto the floor.
It listed purchases from a medical supply company.
Bandages.
Disinfectant.
Prescription sedatives.
Orthopedic restraints.
Daniel's stomach tightened.
"What kind of archive room needs these?"
Before Samuel could answer, sunlight reflected from a tiny camera hidden above the office door.
It was still recording.
May you like
Someone had expected visitors.
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