Chapter 2 - The Secret Inside the Flash Drive
Roman stared at the photograph on his phone.
For several seconds, he forgot how to breathe.
The picture was not blurry.
It was not a mistake.
It was Emma.
His pregnant wife.
Standing outside a private office building downtown.
And beside her was Adrian Cross.
The man Roman trusted more than anyone.
His business partner.
His childhood friend.
The person who knew every detail about Roman's empire.
Roman zoomed in on the image.
Emma was holding something in her hand.
A folder.
A thick black folder with a silver label attached to the front.
Roman's eyes narrowed.
Because he knew that folder.
He had seen it before.
Years ago.
Before he became the man everyone feared.
Before the money.
Before the power.
Before people started whispering his name like it was something dangerous.
That folder contained information about the one thing Roman had spent years trying to bury.
His past.
The phone buzzed again.
Another message from the unknown number.
"Ask Adrian why your wife was looking for the truth."
Roman's fingers tightened around the phone.
His first instinct was anger.
Someone was playing with him.
Someone was trying to turn him against the people closest to him.
But then he looked around the nursery.
At the empty crib.
At the missing hospital bag.
At the note Emma left behind.
"You never noticed what I knew."
Those words felt different now.
They were not written by a woman who was leaving because she was hurt.
They were written by someone who had discovered something.
Something dangerous.
Roman grabbed his coat.
He walked downstairs.
His security team was already waiting in the entrance hall.
Three men in black suits stood silently.
They had worked for Roman for years.
They knew when to speak.
And when to stay quiet.
"Find Adrian Cross."
The men exchanged a glance.
Roman noticed.
That bothered him.
"What?"
One of them lowered his eyes.
"Mr. Vale..."
Roman stepped closer.
"What?"
The man hesitated.
"Adrian hasn't been answering calls since last night."
The silence that followed felt heavier than before.
Roman looked at the Christmas tree.
At the ring box still sitting beneath it.
His wife had disappeared.
His closest friend had vanished.
And somehow, both events were connected.
"Track his phone."
"We tried."
Roman looked up.
"What do you mean you tried?"
The security guard swallowed.
"His phone was turned off three hours ago."
Roman said nothing.
Because three hours ago was exactly when Emma left.
He walked toward the door.
"Prepare the car."
One of the guards moved quickly.
"Where are we going?"
Roman looked back.
"To the only place Adrian would hide something."
The old office building had been abandoned for almost two years.
Roman remembered it clearly.
It was where he and Adrian had started.
Before they became wealthy.
Before their company expanded across Chicago.
Before people feared them.
Back then, they were just two young men trying to survive.
Roman had forgotten about this place.
But apparently, Emma hadn't.
The elevator did not work.
Roman walked up six flights of stairs.
Every step made him more suspicious.
Why would Emma come here?
Why would Adrian bring her here?
What did they find?
At the top floor, Roman stopped.
The office door was slightly open.
That alone was impossible.
Adrian never left anything unsecured.
Roman pushed the door open.
Inside, everything was dark.
Dust covered the furniture.
Old files were stacked everywhere.
The room smelled like paper and old memories.
Roman walked slowly inside.
Then he saw it.
A coffee cup.
Still sitting on the desk.
Not old.
Fresh.
Someone had been here recently.
Roman reached for it.
The coffee was cold.
But not from days ago.
Hours.
He looked around.
"Adrian."
No answer.
He opened the first drawer.
Empty.
Second drawer.
Nothing.
Then he noticed something carved into the wooden desk.
A small message.
A message written by someone in a hurry.
"Roman was never supposed to find this."
Roman stepped back.
His expression changed.
Because he knew that handwriting.
Emma.
She had been here.
She had left clues.
Not for Adrian.
For him.
Roman searched the desk again.
This time more carefully.
Behind a loose piece of wood, he found a hidden compartment.
Inside was another envelope.
His name was written on it.
Not Roman Vale.
Just:
Roman.
The way Emma used to write it when they were alone.
Before everything changed.
He opened the envelope.
Inside was a letter.
His hands became still as he read.
Roman,
If you found this, it means I was right.
You were never going to believe me if I told you directly.
You would have protected him.
Roman stopped reading.
Protected him.
Adrian.
His best friend.
His business partner.
The person Roman had defended countless times.
He continued.
I spent months trying to understand why people around you were afraid of you. I thought it was because of your reputation. I thought it was because of the companies you bought, the deals you made, the enemies you created.
I was wrong.
Roman's jaw tightened.
The room suddenly felt colder.
The real reason people fear you is because they know what happened five years ago.
Roman froze.
Five years ago.
The night he never talked about.
The night that changed everything.
The night Adrian told him to forget.
The night Roman promised himself he would never look back.
A sound interrupted him.
A floorboard creaked behind him.
Roman immediately turned.
Nobody.
The office was empty.
But the door was moving.
Slowly.
Someone had been standing outside.
Roman walked toward it.
He opened the door.
The hallway was empty.
Only a small object was lying on the floor.
A necklace.
Emma's necklace.
The one he had given her when they found out they were having a baby.
Roman picked it up.
His face changed.
Because attached to the necklace was a tiny piece of paper.
Four words.
"He knows you remember."
Roman stared at the message.
He didn't know who "he" meant.
But deep inside, he already had an answer.
His phone rang.
Unknown number.
Again.
This time, Roman answered.
"Where is my wife?"
A woman's voice responded.
Quiet.
Shaking.
"Roman..."
He froze.
Because he recognized that voice.
It belonged to someone he thought had disappeared years ago.
Someone who should not have been able to call him.
"Who is this?"
A pause.
Then the woman whispered:
"You need to know what Adrian did before he finds Emma."
Roman looked toward the dark hallway.
"Where are you?"
The woman breathed heavily.
Then she said one sentence.
"Open the file hidden beneath the desk."
The call ended.
Roman turned back toward the desk.
Slowly.
He dropped to his knees.
He reached underneath.
His fingers touched something hidden in the wood.
A second compartment.
A locked metal box.
May you like
And engraved on the top was a name Roman had not seen in five years...
Emma's father.
