Chapter 20 - The Thirteenth Founder
Silence settled over the hidden boardroom.
Richard slowly reached toward the white cloth covering the mysterious chair. No one tried to stop him. Even Edward seemed uncertain, as though he had never dared uncover it himself.
With one steady movement, Richard pulled the cloth away.
A chair unlike the others stood beneath it.
The leather was darker.
The armrests were carved by hand.
Instead of a bronze plate bearing only a number, this chair displayed a simple inscription.
Founder XIII
Below it, in much smaller letters:
Awaiting Return
Daniel frowned.
"There was a thirteenth founder all along?"
Edward nodded.
"Officially, no."
"Unofficially... always."
Richard circled the chair slowly.
"It wasn't in the original plans."
"No."
"Who added it?"
Edward remained silent.
Richard examined the wood carefully.
His fingers paused over tiny scratches hidden beneath one armrest.
Someone had carved initials decades ago.
E.M.
Richard's heartbeat quickened.
Emily Morgan.
His daughter.
But she had been only eight years old.
Or so he had always believed.
Why would her initials appear on a founder's chair?
Maria leaned closer.
"Maybe another employee had the same initials."
Richard gently shook his head.
"No."
He recognized the carving style.
Emily had once scratched her initials into the family garden bench after receiving a tiny pocketknife as a birthday gift.
He had scolded her for damaging the wood.
Later, he secretly varnished the carving so it would never disappear.
The scratches beneath the chair were identical.
Someone had allowed Emily into this hidden room.
Someone wanted her remembered.
Daniel looked toward Edward.
"You knew."
Edward answered carefully.
"I knew the chair existed."
"But not why."
Richard knelt beside the chair.
Hidden beneath the seat was another compartment.
Inside rested a small velvet pouch.
He opened it slowly.
A silver compass.
Old.
Scratched.
Its glass cracked.
Richard smiled through moist eyes.
"I gave this to Emily when she was seven."
Maria whispered,
"So she really was here."
Richard turned the compass over.
An engraved sentence appeared on the back.
Never follow the map. Follow the truth.
Before anyone could speak again, every light inside the boardroom dimmed.
A soft electronic tone echoed overhead.
The countdown clock changed.
00:59:59
Exactly one hour remained.
Then another message appeared beneath it.
FOUNDER XIII LOCATION UPDATED
For the first time...
Instead of displaying UNKNOWN...
The system showed a blinking point on a digital map.
Not overseas.
Not in another city.
May you like
The signal originated...
Somewhere inside the hotel itself.
