Chapter 13: The Brother Who Carried the Secret
The message stayed on my screen for eleven minutes.
I know because I watched every second pass.
Eleven minutes of staring at four words that felt more dangerous than any threat Adrian had ever made.
*Look at your brothers.*
A part of me wanted to delete it immediately.
Not because I believed it.
Because I was afraid of what would happen if it was true.
My brothers had been my foundation.
When our parents died, they became my protectors.
When I cried, they were there.
When I struggled, they stood beside me.
They were the people who taught me that family meant safety.
But I had learned something painful over the last few weeks.
The people closest to you were the ones who could hurt you the most.
Adrian proved that.
And now someone wanted me to question the only people who had never abandoned me.
I closed the laptop.
No.
I refused to let another person manipulate me.
Not Adrian.
Not whoever sent that message.
If there was a secret, I would uncover it myself.
The next morning, I asked Marcus to meet me alone.
He arrived at my father's house within thirty minutes.
The moment he walked into the study, he knew something was wrong.
"What happened?""
I didn't answer immediately.
Instead, I placed the laptop on the desk.
The message was still there.
His expression changed.
Not dramatically.
Just enough.
But I noticed.
And that scared me.
"You know something.""
Marcus looked away.
A tiny movement.
A tiny mistake.
But I had spent eight years married to a liar.
I had learned how to recognize hesitation.
"Marcus.""
He sighed.
"Evelyn.""
"No.""
I shook my head.
"Don't protect me.""
His eyes met mine.
"I've spent my entire life protecting you.""
"And maybe that's the problem.""
The words hurt both of us.
I saw it.
Marcus had always been the strongest.
The calmest.
The brother who never broke.
But in that moment, he looked tired.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
"I never wanted you involved in this.""
"I was already involved.""
I pointed toward the documents.
"From the moment Adrian married me.""
Silence.
Then Marcus sat down.
"There is something I didn't tell you.""
My chest tightened.
I waited.
"After your father died, I found out Nathan wasn't the only person connected to the Phoenix Project.""
"Who else?""
Marcus looked at me.
"Me.""
The word landed like a stone.
"What?""
"I was seventeen when I discovered your father had enemies.""
I stared at him.
"He told me things.""
"Why?""
"Because he knew I would protect you.""
I felt anger rising.
"Protect me by lying to me?""
Marcus lowered his eyes.
"I was young.""
"So was I.""
"I know.""
His voice broke slightly.
"And that's why I made the wrong choice.""
I said nothing.
Because part of me understood.
But understanding didn't erase pain.
"What did you hide?""
Marcus took a deep breath.
"The night before your father died, he gave me a copy of the Phoenix security protocol.""
My heart stopped.
"You had it?""
"Yes.""
"Where is it?""
Marcus looked toward the window.
"I destroyed it.""
I froze.
"You destroyed my father's work?""
"No.""
He looked back at me.
"I destroyed the part Adrian could use.""
I didn't know what to say.
Because suddenly everything changed.
Marcus wasn't hiding the Phoenix Project.
He was hiding his role in protecting it.
"What about the message?""
His face became serious.
"I think someone wants you to distrust us.""
"Who?""
"I don't know.""
A pause.
"But I know who has access to information that would make that possible.""
"Who?""
Marcus answered quietly.
"Adrian.""
I frowned.
"But Adrian is hiding.""
"Not completely.""
Marcus placed a file on the desk.
"We found activity from one of his old accounts.""
I opened it.
A transaction.
A payment.
To someone named:
*Nathan Hart.*
My uncle.
Again.
But this time, something was different.
The payment wasn't recent.
It was years old.
Before Adrian married me.
Before everything.
I looked at Marcus.
"Adrian and Nathan worked together.""
Marcus nodded.
"And I think your father discovered it.""
My heart sank.
The betrayal was spreading.
Not just one person.
A network.
A chain of choices made years ago.
"Where is Nathan now?""
Marcus hesitated.
"Missing.""
Of course.
The person with answers had disappeared.
Before I could respond, Julian called.
I answered immediately.
His voice was urgent.
"You need to come here.""
"What happened?""
"We found Adrian.""
My heart stopped.
"Where?""
A pause.
"At the old Hart research facility.""
The place where Phoenix began.
The place my father abandoned.
The place where everything started.
I looked at Marcus.
He already understood.
Adrian wasn't running anymore.
May you like
He was going back to the beginning.
And this time, we were going with him.
