Chapter 6: The Enemy Hidden Inside The Family
The name Adrian gave me stayed in my mind all night.
Victor Halston.
I knew the name.
Everyone in the business world knew the name.
A legendary investor.
A ruthless negotiator.
A man who built companies by finding weaknesses and exploiting them.
But what bothered me was not who Victor was.
It was what Adrian said.
“The one who knows why your father really chose me.””
I hated unanswered questions.
Especially questions involving my father.
The next morning, I contacted every archive connected to Ashcroft Holdings.
Within hours, Daniel found something.
A partnership agreement from fifteen years earlier.
My father.
Victor Halston.
And Adrian Vale.
I stared at the document.
Adrian had not been a random young entrepreneur my father decided to support.
He had been selected.
Carefully.
Purposefully.
I looked at Daniel.
“What am I missing?””
He hesitated.
“That is what we are trying to determine.””
I hated that answer.
Because it meant there was a part of my own family history I didn’t know.
That afternoon, Victor requested a meeting.
I agreed.
Not because I trusted him.
Because I needed answers.
The meeting took place in an old restaurant where powerful people made quiet deals.
Victor arrived exactly on time.
He was in his seventies.
Silver hair.
Sharp eyes.
The kind of person who noticed everything.
“Eleanor Ashcroft.””
He smiled.
“Your father would be proud.””
I sat across from him.
“Then tell me something.””
“Anything.””
“Why did my father choose Adrian?””
Victor studied me.
Then he sighed.
“Because your father believed Adrian could become great.””
I waited.
“That’s not the whole answer.””
Victor smiled faintly.
“You always were your father’s daughter.””
He opened a folder.
Inside were old documents.
“Your father saw potential in Adrian.””
I looked at the papers.
“He also saw danger.””
My eyes lifted.
“What?””
Victor nodded.
“Your father knew Adrian wanted power.””
“Then why help him?””
“Because your father believed people could change.””
I looked away.
That sounded exactly like him.
Too trusting.
Too hopeful.
Victor continued.
“But Adrian changed.””
The restaurant suddenly felt colder.
“How?””
Victor leaned forward.
“When he realized he could never truly control Ashcroft Holdings, he became obsessed with proving he didn’t need you.””
I felt my stomach tighten.
That was the truth.
The entire marriage.
The entire performance.
Everything.
Adrian wasn’t just trying to build an empire.
He was trying to prove he was powerful without me.
Victor handed me another document.
“This was found recently.””
I opened it.
My eyes scanned the page.
A confidential agreement.
Between Adrian and someone else.
The signature was not Vanessa’s.
It was someone I knew.
Someone I trusted.
I looked up.
“Who gave you this?””
Victor didn’t answer.
“Eleanor, you need to understand something.””
His voice became serious.
“Adrian is not your only enemy.””
The words hit harder than I expected.
Because deep down, I already knew.
The betrayal had layers.
The affair.
The money.
The lies.
They were all pieces of something larger.
I looked back at the signature.
My hands tightened around the paper.
Someone close to me had helped Adrian.
Someone inside my own circle.
“Who?””
Victor stood.
“You already know.””
I looked at him.
“No.””
He walked away.
But before leaving, he said one sentence.
“The person who betrayed you is the person you trusted enough to never suspect.””
I sat there for several minutes.
Thinking about everyone around me.
Family.
Executives.
Friends.
Then my phone buzzed.
A message.
Unknown number.
One sentence.
You should have asked Adrian why your father never made you CEO.
I stared at the screen.
Because that was impossible.
My father had chosen me.
Hadn’t he?
Unless…
Unless there was something else.
Something Adrian knew.
Something everyone had hidden from me.
And suddenly, the biggest question was no longer:
How do I destroy Adrian Vale?
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It became:
What if Adrian Vale was never the biggest threat?
