Chapter 3 - The Man Who Was Supposed to Be Dead
Daniel's phone kept ringing.
Nobody moved.
The sound echoed through Marcus Reed's old office like an alarm.
A warning.
A threat.
Daniel stared at the screen as if the device itself had become dangerous.
I watched him carefully.
For eight years, Daniel Cross had stood beside me through wars, negotiations, and attacks.
He had taken bullets meant for me.
He had protected my family.
He had earned my trust.
But now Marcus Reed's final letter was sitting on my desk.
And it contained one sentence.
Do not trust the man beside you.
I had spent years believing betrayal would come from my enemies.
I never expected it to come from someone standing within arm's reach.
"Answer it," I said.
Daniel looked at me.
"Mr. Vale..."
"Answer the phone."
His jaw tightened.
Slowly, he pressed the button.
He didn't say hello.
He simply listened.
A few seconds passed.
Then his expression changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
Like he was hearing the voice of someone he had been waiting for.
"Where?" Daniel finally whispered.
The room became silent.
I stepped closer.
"Who is it?"
Daniel ended the call.
Nobody spoke.
"Daniel."
He looked at me.
"I need to explain."
I laughed quietly.
It wasn't because anything was funny.
It was because six years of lies had finally reached my front door.
"Everyone always needs to explain after they get caught."
Clara lowered her eyes.
She knew I was right.
Daniel looked at Marcus's letter.
"He was trying to protect you."
"Marcus?"
Daniel nodded.
"Before he died."
I picked up the letter.
"Marcus wrote that I shouldn't trust you."
Daniel closed his eyes.
"I knew he would write that."
Those words stopped me.
"You knew?"
He looked at me.
"Because I helped him write it."
The room froze.
Lily moved closer to Clara.
I stared at Daniel.
"What did you just say?"
Daniel walked toward the desk slowly.
"I was there the night Marcus died."
The memory came back instantly.
Six years ago.
The phone call.
The hospital.
The police report.
The funeral.
The endless questions.
Everyone had told me Marcus lost control of his car on a rainy road.
A tragic accident.
Nothing more.
But Daniel was there.
"You told me you arrived after the accident."
"I lied."
My hands tightened.
"Why?"
Daniel looked at Clara.
Then at Lily.
"Because if I told you the truth, you would have gone after them."
"Who?"
Daniel didn't answer immediately.
That hesitation told me everything.
There was someone bigger.
Someone still hiding.
I stepped toward him.
"Who killed Marcus?"
Daniel looked at the floor.
"Marcus wasn't killed because of what he knew."
I waited.
"He was killed because he was about to reveal who was behind it."
I stared at him.
"Behind what?"
Daniel walked to the hidden compartment.
He removed another file.
This one was sealed.
Different from the others.
The name written on the front made my stomach tighten.
ADRIAN VALE.
My own name.
I opened it.
Inside were photographs.
Surveillance images.
Bank transfers.
Reports.
Someone had been tracking me.
For years.
Not my business.
Not my empire.
Me.
The first photo showed me leaving my office six years ago.
The second showed me entering Marcus's funeral.
The third showed Clara carrying Lily outside the mansion.
My eyes stopped.
The photo was dated one day after Clara disappeared.
She had never left.
She had been watching.
Waiting.
"What is this?" I asked.
Clara stepped forward.
"The people who betrayed Marcus were not trying to destroy your company."
She looked at me.
"They were trying to replace you."
The words hit harder than I expected.
A mafia empire wasn't built only with money.
It was built with loyalty.
Trust.
Fear.
If someone wanted to take my position, they didn't need to kill me.
They needed everyone around me to believe I was alone.
I turned another page.
There was a list.
Names.
My inner circle.
People who had worked with me for years.
Some names were crossed out.
Some had dates beside them.
Then I saw one name.
Richard Vale.
My older brother.
I stopped.
Impossible.
Richard had disappeared ten years earlier.
Everyone believed he was dead.
A boat accident.
No body recovered.
No answers.
Just another tragedy.
But beside his name was a recent photograph.
Taken three months ago.
My hand went still.
"Adrian..."
I didn't hear Clara.
I was staring at the picture.
A man standing outside a building.
Older.
Different.
But unmistakable.
My brother was alive.
"Where did you get this?"
Clara swallowed.
"Marcus found it."
"Marcus knew Richard was alive?"
She nodded.
"And he discovered why he disappeared."
I looked at Daniel.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Daniel's face showed regret.
"Because Marcus made me promise."
I stepped closer.
"You chose his promise over me?"
"No."
Daniel's voice cracked.
"I chose keeping you alive."
That answer made me angry.
Because I believed him.
And I hated that I believed him.
"What happened the night Marcus died?"
Daniel looked toward the window.
"The night Marcus died, he called me."
"What did he say?"
Daniel took a breath.
"He said someone inside your organization had been sending information to Richard."
My heart sank.
"Richard was behind this?"
"No."
Daniel looked at me.
"Richard was trying to stop it."
The room went silent again.
A dead brother.
A missing maid.
A hidden envelope.
A warning letter.
None of it made sense.
Unless the story I had believed for six years was completely wrong.
I looked at Clara.
"Why did you stay hidden?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"Because the person who wanted Marcus gone knew about Lily."
She touched her daughter's shoulder.
"They told me if I came back, she would disappear."
My expression hardened.
Someone had threatened a child.
Someone inside my own world.
Someone close enough to know everything.
"Who?"
Clara opened her mouth.
Then stopped.
Her phone suddenly vibrated.
She looked at the screen.
The color disappeared from her face.
"What is it?"
She didn't answer.
I took the phone from her hand.
There was one message.
No number.
No name.
Just four words.
I read them slowly.
"She is already inside."
I looked around the office.
Daniel reached for his weapon.
Lily grabbed her mother's hand.
Then we heard it.
A soft sound from the hallway.
A woman's footsteps.
Slow.
Calm.
Coming closer.
May you like
The office door handle began to turn.
And someone outside whispered my name.
