Chapter 7 - The Truth Hidden Beneath Seven YearsThe morning after the gala, I arrived at Sterling Global earlier than everyone else.
I always did.
Old habits were difficult to erase.
For years, I woke up before sunrise.
I prepared breakfast.
I packed Ryan's lunch.
I checked his schedule.
I reminded him about important meetings.
I thought those small actions were signs of love.
Now I realized something painful.
I had been carrying a relationship that only existed because I carried it.
Elena placed a coffee cup beside me.
"You haven't slept."
I looked at the documents in front of me.
"I slept."
She raised an eyebrow.
"For two hours."
I smiled slightly.
"That's enough."
"No."
She crossed her arms.
"That's how you ended up sacrificing seven years of your life."
Her words were harsh.
But true.
I looked through the glass window of my office.
The city moved below me.
Millions of people chasing dreams.
Millions of people hiding parts of themselves.
Just like I did.
"Elena."
"Yes?"
"Do you think I made a mistake?"
She immediately answered.
"No."
I looked surprised.
She continued.
"You made a choice."
"You wanted to know if someone could love Victoria."
"Not Victoria Sterling."
"Not the billionaire heiress."
"Just Victoria."
I looked down.
"And I failed."
Elena softened.
"No."
"You discovered the truth."
Before I could answer.
My office phone rang.
The screen showed an unknown number.
I answered.
"Victoria Sterling speaking."
A man's voice appeared.
"Madam President."
I recognized him immediately.
Thomas Reed.
One of the oldest executives in the company.
"There is something you need to know."
His voice sounded serious.
"What happened?"
"Ryan Bennett was not acting alone."
I became still.
"What do you mean?"
Thomas lowered his voice.
"Before his suspension."
"He accessed confidential company files."
My expression changed.
"What files?"
"Your father's old documents."
My heart stopped.
Because those files were not ordinary.
They contained information about my family's history.
And information about the person who helped my father build Sterling Global.
Someone whose name had disappeared from every record.
Someone I never wanted to hear about again.
"Who else knows?"
Thomas hesitated.
"Nobody."
I stood up.
"Find out everything."
"Immediately."
After the call ended.
Elena looked at me.
"What is it?"
I didn't answer right away.
Because suddenly the past I had buried for seven years was coming back.
The reason I left my old life.
The reason I changed my identity.
The reason I promised myself I would never trust anyone blindly again.
Ryan had found a door.
A door I had locked for years.
And now he was trying to open it.
I walked toward the window.
For the first time since the gala.
I wasn't thinking about revenge.
I wasn't thinking about divorce.
I was thinking about survival.
Because if Ryan discovered the truth behind that secret...
He wouldn't just try to destroy my company.
He would destroy my entire family legacy.
And I knew exactly who was helping him.
Victor Black.
The only man who knew how to hurt Sterling Global.
The man my father once called his greatest mistake.
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And now...
He was coming back.
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