Chapter 8 - SOMEONE WAS WATCHING
The atmosphere inside the dealership changed instantly.
Minutes earlier they had been discussing old memories.
Now the conversation felt urgent.
Samuel spread a city map across his conference table.
"The abandoned Reeves facility is here."
He marked the location with a pen.
Richard pointed several miles away.
"The warehouse from your father's sketch is here."
Ryan frowned.
"They're nowhere near each other."
"Exactly," Richard replied.
"Which means the warehouse wasn't the factory."
Daniel slowly pieced the clues together.
"It was a storage site."
Samuel nodded.
"A place nobody would connect to Reeves."
Ryan looked uneasy.
"If someone already broke into the factory..."
"They probably didn't find what they wanted," Richard answered.
"Otherwise they wouldn't keep searching."
Daniel looked toward the window overlooking the showroom.
Everything outside seemed normal.
Customers were leaving.
Salespeople locked display vehicles.
Cleaning staff polished spotless floors.
Yet for the first time all day...
He felt like someone was watching him.
Not the curious stares from earlier.
Something colder.
Instinctive.
Years of living on the streets had sharpened senses that comfortable people rarely developed.
Daniel slowly walked toward the window.
Across the street...
A dark gray sedan sat parked beneath a tree.
Its headlights remained off.
Inside, two figures watched the dealership.
Neither moved.
Neither got out.
Samuel joined him.
"You know them?"
Daniel shook his head.
"No."
Richard looked through the blinds.
"I've seen that car before."
"Where?"
"Outside the archive building two weeks ago."
The room became silent again.
Ryan whispered,
"You think they're following you?"
Richard answered honestly.
"I think they're following the documents."
Daniel instinctively touched the pocket containing the old key.
For years nobody had cared who he was.
Now, within a single afternoon, strangers were searching for him.
Watching him.
Waiting.
His father had written only one warning.
Never trust anyone who asks for the key before earning your trust.
Daniel suddenly understood why.
Before anyone could speak again, Marcus knocked quietly on the office door.
Everyone turned.
His confidence from earlier had completely disappeared.
"I know I probably don't deserve to be in this room..."
He looked directly at Daniel.
"...but I think someone searched my office this afternoon."
Samuel frowned.
"What?"
Marcus nodded nervously.
"My filing cabinet was open."
"Anything missing?"
"I don't know."
Marcus swallowed.
"But whoever came in wasn't looking for money."
"What makes you think that?"
"They ignored the safe."
Marcus hesitated.
"They only went through the employee records."
Daniel felt an uneasy chill.
"Employee records?"
Marcus nodded.
"They were looking for someone."
Samuel already knew the answer before Marcus spoke again.
"I think..."
Marcus looked at Daniel.
May you like
"...they were trying to find everything they could about you."
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