CHAPTER 2: Chapter 3 - The First Recording

Officer Hart moved between Leon and the table before the old man reached it. He did not touch him, but his presence was enough. Leon stopped, his cane striking once against the marble.
"Officer," he said, still smooth, "I am asking you not to let a frightened child turn this into a spectacle."
Sophia unlocked the tablet.
The gallery opened to a video taken from a low angle, probably from beneath the foyer console. The image shook at first, then steadied. Isabella appeared on the screen carrying a tray of folded linens. Leon's voice came from somewhere above the lens.
"You will leave tonight," he said in the video. "And when the police ask, they will find the pendant in your room."
A murmur passed through the guests.
On the screen, Isabella froze. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because Maya listens to you," Leon replied. "And I cannot have that."
The video ended there, as if a small hand had fumbled and stopped it.
In the real foyer, no one spoke. Leon's face had not changed much, but the color under his eyes had drained away.
Sophia looked at Isabella. "Is there more?"
Maya nodded against her dress. "The red light saw him take Grandma's key."