Chapter 7: The Man Behind The Curtain
The message remained on my phone for hours.
I read it again and again.
*You found Victor. But you haven’t found the person who controls him.*
Most people would have dismissed it as a threat.
I didn’t.
Threats were emotional.
This message was calculated.
Whoever sent it wanted me to know something.
They wanted me to look deeper.
The next morning, I arrived at The Grand Regent before sunrise.
The hotel was quiet.
Employees walked through the lobby preparing for another busy day. Guests carried coffee cups and luggage. The world continued moving as if nothing had happened.
But behind those polished walls, everything had changed.
A company that had appeared perfect was suddenly exposed.
And when people realized their secrets were being uncovered, they became unpredictable.
Daniel was already waiting in my office.
He looked exhausted.
“You didn’t sleep,” I said.
He shook his head.
“Neither did you.””
I ignored the comment.
“Any updates?””
He placed a folder on my desk.
“The investigation team started reviewing the records.””
“And?””
“They found more.””
I opened the folder.
The first pages showed financial reports.
The numbers looked normal.
Too normal.
“Revenue manipulation?”” I asked.
Daniel nodded.
“Possibly.””
I looked closer.
Several properties showed unusually high customer satisfaction scores.
“Impossible.””
“That was my thought.””
I turned another page.
The complaints from those properties were almost nonexistent.
“No complaints?””
“Not exactly.””
Daniel pointed at the data.
“They were being transferred.””
“Transferred where?””
He hesitated.
“Into a separate system.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
The hidden office wasn’t just about one hotel.
It was a network.
Someone had created a way to control information across the entire company.
“Who has access to this system?””
Daniel looked uncomfortable.
“Only senior executives.””
“Names.””
He took a breath.
“Victor Hale. Margaret Sloan. Robert Keller. And me.””
I looked up.
“Did you know about this system?””
“No.””
His answer came immediately.
I studied him.
He looked ashamed.
Not guilty.
There was a difference.
“Who is Margaret Sloan?””
Daniel sat down.
“She’s the chief financial officer.””
“And Robert Keller?””
“Head of corporate operations.””
Two executives.
Two people with power.
Two possibilities.
My phone buzzed.
A message.
Unknown number.
Another warning.
*Ask Margaret about the missing millions.*
I showed Daniel.
His face changed.
“What?””
“Do you know anything about missing money?””
“No.””
I stood.
“Then we ask.””
Margaret Sloan arrived twenty minutes later.
She entered my office wearing a confident expression.
Unlike Victor, she didn’t appear nervous.
She appeared prepared.
That interested me.
People who are innocent usually want answers.
People who are guilty usually want control.
“Ethan,” she said.
She rarely used my first name.
Not unless she wanted to appear comfortable.
“I heard there were concerns about operational procedures.””
“Concerns?””
I smiled slightly.
“Is that what we’re calling it?””
Her expression remained calm.
“I understand the situation is serious.””
“Do you?””
I placed a document on the table.
“Can you explain this?””
She looked down.
A financial transfer.
Her eyes moved quickly.
Too quickly.
She recognized it.
“What about it?””
“Three million dollars moved from a hotel improvement account.””
“That’s normal.””
“Where did it go?””
“Vendor payments.””
“Which vendor?””
She paused.
Only for a second.
But I noticed.
“Several contractors.””
“Names?””
Margaret leaned back.
“Ethan, with respect, financial operations are complicated.””
I stared at her.
“That’s not an answer.””
Her expression hardened.
“I have managed this company’s finances for seven years.””
“And I appreciate your service.””
I leaned forward.
“But loyalty does not replace accountability.””
For the first time, her confidence slipped.
“I’m being accused?””
“No.””
I looked at the documents.
“You’re being questioned.””
She stood.
“I don’t like where this is going.””
“Neither do I.””
She walked toward the door.
Then stopped.
“You should be careful.””
I looked at her.
“About what?””
“Not everyone who smiles at you is your friend.””
Then she left.
The words bothered me.
Not because they were threatening.
Because they sounded like advice.
That afternoon, I met with the investigation team.
They had discovered something unusual.
A private company connected to multiple payments.
The company name meant nothing.
But the owner did.
“Who owns it?”” I asked.
The investigator looked at me.
“Your father’s old business partner.””
I froze.
“My father?””
The room became silent.
My father had died twelve years earlier.
Before I inherited the company.
Before The Grand Regent became what it was.
His old business relationships were ancient history.
Or so I thought.
“Name.””
The investigator hesitated.
“Alexander Cross.””
I remembered.
Everyone in my family knew that name.
Alexander Cross had once been my father’s closest friend.
They built businesses together.
They trusted each other.
Until one day, they didn’t.
My father never explained what happened.
He only told me one thing:
“Some people don’t betray you because they hate you. They betray you because they believe they deserve what you have.””
I had forgotten those words.
Until now.
That night, I visited the old family estate.
A place I rarely went anymore.
The house felt smaller than I remembered.
I walked into my father’s study.
The room still contained his old books.
His desk.
His photographs.
I opened the drawers.
Most were empty.
Then I found something.
A locked compartment.
I had never seen it before.
Inside was a small envelope.
My father’s handwriting was on the front.
*For Ethan. Only after you learn the truth.*
My hands tightened.
I opened it.
Inside was a letter.
My father’s words stared back at me.
Ethan,
If you are reading this, something has happened that I hoped would never happen.
The company you inherited is not as simple as you believe.
I continued reading.
Alexander Cross was not only my partner. He was the man who tried to destroy everything I built.
My heart raced.
But he did not act alone.
I stopped.
The next line was underlined.
The person closest to me was the one who helped him.
I stared at the paper.
My father had known.
He had known someone inside his company betrayed him.
But who?
The letter continued.
Trust actions, not words.
The person who appears most loyal may be the person who has the most to gain.
I folded the letter.
A terrible thought entered my mind.
Someone inside my current company.
Someone close.
Someone powerful.
My phone rang.
Daniel.
I answered.
“Daniel?””
His voice sounded urgent.
“Mr. Vance, you need to come back immediately.””
“What happened?””
A pause.
Then:
“We found something in Victor Hale’s files.””
“What?””
“Something connected to your family.””
I looked at my father’s letter.
The past wasn’t buried.
May you like
It was waiting.
“I’m on my way.””
