Chapter 4 - The Performance
Margot dropped the documents back into the box.
She placed the damaged drawer front on the floor, grabbed a heavy framed photograph from the shelf, and knocked it against the desk corner.
The glass shattered just as Lucas entered.
He stopped in the doorway.
“What happened?”
Margot stared down at the broken frame.
“I was looking for our daughter’s old school picture. The drawer stuck, and I pulled too hard.”
Lucas’s eyes moved from the shattered glass to the torn lock.
Then to Margot’s face.
“You went through my desk?”
“Your desk?”
She let the hurt enter her voice.
“I thought this was our house.”
Lucas’s jaw tightened.
He stepped forward and examined the folders.
Margot had returned them in the wrong order intentionally.
She needed to know which ones frightened him.
His hand immediately reached for the metal box.
That was enough.
“You could’ve asked me,” he said.
“I didn’t think I needed permission.”
Lucas carried the box against his chest.
His pleasant mask slipped.
“Some documents are confidential.”
“From your wife?”
“From anyone who doesn’t understand them.”
The insult landed exactly as he intended.
Margot lowered her eyes, allowing him to believe it had worked.
“I’m sorry.”
His shoulders relaxed.
He touched her cheek.
“That’s why I handle these things.”
Then he held out another envelope.
“Sign this instead.”
Margot took it.
“I will.”
Lucas smiled again.
May you like
But as he turned away, she saw him checking whether the metal box was still locked.
👉 Lucas believed shame had made Margot obedient again—but she had already copied the one number that could expose him.
