Chapter 8 - The Friend Who Was The Real Enemy
For seventeen years, Daniel had stood beside Grant Holloway.
He had been there when Grant had nothing.
He had been there when Grant built his empire.
He had been there when enemies came after them.
He had been the person Grant trusted when nobody else could be trusted.
And now he was standing in front of us with the calm expression of someone who had never been afraid of being discovered.
That was the part that terrified me.
Not anger.
Not panic.
Confidence.
Daniel smiled slightly.
"After all this time, I was beginning to wonder if you would ever find the truth."
Grant moved immediately.
His hand reached toward the weapon hidden beneath his jacket.
But Daniel raised one hand.
"Don't."
The single word stopped everyone.
Not because Daniel was stronger.
Because he knew something.
Something that made Grant hesitate.
"You always were predictable, Grant."
Grant's voice became cold.
"What did you do?"
Daniel looked around the office.
At the photographs.
At the memories.
At everything Grant had built.
Then he smiled.
"I helped you build this."
"No."
Grant stepped forward.
"You used me."
Daniel tilted his head.
"Isn't that what everyone does?"
The answer was so casual.
So empty.
It made my stomach turn.
I looked at Grant.
For the first time, I saw the pain of betrayal.
Not the anger.
Not the revenge.
The pain.
Because enemies were easy.
You knew what they wanted.
You knew they wanted to hurt you.
But a friend?
A person who sat beside you for years?
A person who knew your weaknesses?
That was different.
"Why?" Grant asked.
Daniel looked at him.
"Because you were always too sentimental."
The room became silent.
"You cared about people."
A small laugh escaped him.
"That was your weakness."
I felt anger rising inside me.
"You mean caring about your family?"
Daniel looked at me.
And his expression changed.
Not much.
Just enough.
"You."
My heart tightened.
"What?"
He stepped closer.
"You were never supposed to survive that night."
Grant immediately moved between us.
"Stay away from her."
Daniel smiled.
"There it is."
"What?"
"Exactly what I mean."
Daniel looked at Grant.
"You always choose people over power."
A pause.
"Even now."
I watched Grant carefully.
Because suddenly I understood something.
Daniel wasn’t just trying to destroy him.
He was trying to prove something.
He wanted Grant to believe that caring was a mistake.
That love was a weakness.
That protecting people was what made him vulnerable.
And maybe that was why he hated Elena.
Because she proved him wrong.
"What happened to my mother?" I asked.
Daniel looked at me.
For the first time, his smile disappeared.
"Your mother was difficult."
My hands tightened.
"Difficult?"
"She believed truth mattered more than survival."
I stepped forward.
"She was brave."
Daniel looked at me.
"No."
His voice became colder.
"She was foolish."
Grant's expression changed.
"Don't talk about her like that."
Daniel turned toward him.
"You still defend her."
A quiet laugh.
"After everything."
The tension in the room became unbearable.
"Tell me what happened."
Daniel looked at me.
"You really want to know?"
"Yes."
He studied my face.
Then he walked toward the desk.
"Your mother discovered something she shouldn't have."
"The evidence."
He nodded.
"The evidence."
"What was on it?"
Daniel smiled.
"Everything."
I waited.
"Every deal. Every secret. Every person Victor controlled."
He looked at Grant.
"Every person involved."
A chill went through me.
"Including you?"
Daniel smiled.
"Especially him."
Grant didn't react.
But I noticed something.
A small movement.
A hesitation.
Like there was another truth hidden beneath the surface.
"Grant?"
He looked at me.
"Not everything Daniel says is true."
Daniel laughed.
"Still protecting her."
I looked between them.
"Someone tell me the truth."
Nobody spoke.
Then Daniel said:
"Your mother trusted Grant."
My heart stopped.
"Yes."
Daniel continued.
"She came to him because she believed he could protect her."
I looked at Grant.
"And?"
Daniel smiled.
"And Grant failed."
The words hit harder than I expected.
Grant looked away.
And that was when I realized.
There was something he blamed himself for.
Something he had carried for seventeen years.
"What happened?"
Grant finally spoke.
"I was supposed to move Elena somewhere safe."
His voice was quiet.
"I had arranged everything."
"Then?"
Daniel answered.
"Then someone leaked the location."
Everyone looked at him.
"You."
Daniel didn't deny it.
"I needed Victor to find her."
My breath caught.
"Why?"
Daniel looked at me.
"Because Victor was becoming impossible to control."
That made no sense.
"You worked with him."
"Yes."
"Then why betray him?"
Daniel smiled.
"Because I never worked for Victor."
The room went silent.
"I worked against everyone."
I frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Daniel walked closer.
"It means Victor was never the person in charge."
A pause.
"He was only another piece."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
Grant stared at him.
"Who?"
Daniel looked at him.
"You still haven't figured it out?"
Nobody moved.
Then Daniel said:
"The person who controlled Victor..."
A pause.
"The person who ordered Elena to disappear..."
Another pause.
"The person who has been watching Claire her entire life..."
He looked directly at me.
"Is someone you already know."
My heart began racing.
"No."
Daniel smiled.
"You really don't know."
I thought of everyone.
Everyone connected to this.
Victor.
Vanessa.
Grant.
Daniel.
But there was someone else.
Someone missing.
Someone who had always been around.
"Who?"
Daniel leaned closer.
And whispered:
"Your father."
The room went completely silent.
My father.
A man I barely remembered.
A man who disappeared from my life before I was old enough to understand why.
I looked at Grant.
His expression told me everything.
He knew.
"You knew?"
Grant closed his eyes.
"I suspected."
I stepped back.
"No."
My voice shook.
"You knew about my father?"
"Claire—"
"No."
The anger came faster than the tears.
"Everyone knew."
I looked around.
"Everyone knew pieces of my life except me."
Daniel watched quietly.
Almost enjoying it.
"That is why your mother hid the evidence with you."
I looked at him.
"Why?"
"Because she knew nobody would protect you if they knew what you carried."
I touched the necklace.
The memory chip.
My mother's last message.
She had trusted me.
The only person she trusted completely.
Then Daniel’s phone rang.
He looked at the screen.
A small smile appeared.
"Perfect timing."
Grant immediately became alert.
"Who is it?"
Daniel ignored him.
He answered.
"Yes."
A pause.
Then:
"She knows."
My blood went cold.
"Who are you talking to?"
Daniel looked at me.
Then slowly ended the call.
"Someone who wants to meet you."
"Who?"
Daniel smiled.
"Your father."
Nobody moved.
Because after seventeen years of searching for answers…
The final missing piece had finally appeared.
But something about Daniel’s expression told me the truth would not bring peace.
It would bring war.
And as I looked at Grant…
At the man my mother once trusted…
At the man who had protected me…
I realized something terrifying.
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Maybe my mother wasn't trying to hide the truth from me.
Maybe she was trying to protect me from what would happen when I finally found it.
