“You just called him Marcus.””
Vanessa closed her eyes for a moment.
Marcus stood.
“Who told you my name?””
She opened her eyes.
“I heard it.””
“From whom?””
Silence.
Marcus took another step toward the car.
Vanessa moved backward.
Marcus pointed toward the floor.
“Then tell me what's under the seat.””
“You can.””
“Why can't you?””
Vanessa's eyes filled with panic.
“Because I was told never to open it.””
Marcus stared at her.
“By the owner?””
She nodded.
“When?””
“Today.””
Marcus's expression tightened.
“Before I arrived?””
Jordan looked at the locked entrance.
“So the owner knew he was coming.””
Vanessa didn't respond.
Marcus crouched again.
The red light beneath the seat suddenly went out.
The showroom fell silent.
Then the car's dashboard lit up.
A small screen displayed one word:
*CONNECTED.*
“Connected to what?””
Vanessa whispered, “No.””
“He said this couldn't happen.””
“Who?””
Vanessa stared at the screen.
“The owner.””
“He said…”
Her voice cracked.
“Say it.””
“He said if that light ever turned solid, I was supposed to call him immediately.””
Marcus looked at the phone in her hand.
“So call him.””
“I tried.””
“Before you came.””
Marcus's eyes narrowed.
“And?””
“He didn't answer.””
Jordan's phone vibrated.
He looked down.
Another message.
His face went pale.
Jordan slowly raised his phone.
The message was from the same number.
*DO NOT TRUST VANESSA.*
“You need to explain that.””
The pieces still didn't fit.
That was the part that bothered him.
The owner knew Marcus was there.
The owner had instructed Vanessa not to let him leave.
The doors had locked.
The car had opened.
And now Jordan had received a warning about Vanessa.
Marcus reached into his pocket.
His fingers closed around the old key fob.
He pressed the hidden button once.
Nothing happened.
He pressed it again.
A small mechanical click came from beneath the car.
Vanessa gasped.
Marcus looked down.
A narrow compartment beneath the driver's seat had opened.
Inside was a black envelope.
No name.
No logo.
Just one handwritten word on the front.
*MARCUS.*
Vanessa covered her mouth.
Marcus didn't reach for the envelope.
He simply looked at it.
Then his phone rang again.
This time, the screen showed a number he recognized.
He answered.
A man's voice came through.
“Marcus, listen carefully.””
The voice continued.
“You need to get out of that showroom before—”
The call abruptly cut off.
Marcus slowly lowered the phone.
Vanessa was staring at him.
Jordan whispered, “What did he say?””
Marcus looked at the black envelope beneath the seat.
Then at the locked glass doors.
“I think,” he said quietly, “someone wants me to open this.””
The envelope shifted slightly.
Not because anyone touched it.
Something inside had moved.
Chapter 7: The Name Inside
Marcus did not touch the envelope.
For several seconds, nobody breathed normally.
The black envelope remained in the open compartment beneath the driver's seat, its handwritten name facing upward.
“Did you see that move?””
Vanessa took another step backward.
“Don't open it.””
“You've said that before.””
“This is different.””
“How?””
Vanessa's eyes stayed fixed on the envelope.
Marcus almost smiled.
“You always say that when you know something.””
Jordan suddenly stepped toward her.
“Jordan, please.””
“No. I'm done.””
He pointed toward the envelope.
“First you tell us the owner doesn't know him. Then you know his name. Then the owner sends messages telling us not to let him leave. Then he tells me not to trust you.””
“And now there's an envelope with Marcus's name inside a car you told us nobody was supposed to touch.””
Jordan's voice rose.
“What exactly are you hiding?””
Vanessa looked at Marcus.
“I was told to follow instructions.””
“What instructions?””
“Keep the car here.””
Marcus glanced at the vehicle.
“I wasn't told.””
He looked back at her.
“That's convenient.””
Vanessa's jaw clenched.
“I was told one other thing.””
“If you came in…”
Jordan leaned forward.
“If he came in, what?””
“I was supposed to make sure you didn't reach the car.””
Marcus looked at the open driver's door.
“You failed.””
The words came out almost inaudibly.
Marcus crouched beside the compartment.
His hand moved toward the envelope.
Vanessa suddenly said, “Marcus.””
She looked frightened.
“Before you open it, you need to understand something.””
Marcus looked up.
“If the owner wanted you to have that…”
She pointed toward the envelope.
“…he wouldn't have hidden it.””
“Unless he wanted me to find it without him being seen.””
Jordan looked toward the ceiling.