Chapter 9 - The Brother Nobody Knew ExistedThe photograph arrived at Sterling Global the next morning.
No sender.
No message.
Only one picture.
I knew immediately who sent it.
Victor.
Because he wanted me to know.
He wanted me to understand that he had found the one thing I protected more than the company.
My family.
I stared at the photograph.
The man beside me was smiling.
A smile I remembered.
A smile I missed.
Because he was my older brother.
Alexander Sterling.
The heir everyone believed was dead.
Elena looked at me.
"Victoria..."
Her voice became quiet.
"Is that..."
I nodded.
"Yes."
For seven years.
I had hidden the truth.
Not just about my identity.
But about my family.
Because the world believed the Sterling bloodline ended with me.
They were wrong.
Alexander was alive.
But he disappeared after the accident that killed my parents.
An accident that was never fully explained.
I closed my eyes.
Memories returned.
The night everything changed.
Rain.
Flashing lights.
Hospital corridors.
My father's final words.
"Protect your brother."
At twenty-two years old.
I lost everything.
My parents.
My brother.
My innocence.
Then I spent years searching.
Until I found Alexander.
Alive.
But broken.
He had been hiding because he believed someone wanted him gone.
Someone connected to Sterling Global.
Someone powerful.
Someone who could erase evidence.
Victor Black.
Elena whispered.
"Ryan knows?"
"Not yet."
"But he will."
And I was right.
That afternoon.
Ryan discovered the truth.
Victor placed the documents in front of him.
"Your wife has a brother."
Ryan stared.
"She lied to me."
Victor smiled.
"Interesting."
Ryan looked confused.
"What?"
"You are angry because she hid something."
"After hiding your entire relationship from her?"
Ryan's expression changed.
Victor continued.
"You spent seven years pretending you built your success alone."
"You hid your own weaknesses."
"You hid your ambition."
"Yet somehow you believe she is the dishonest one."
Ryan remained silent.
But the anger stayed.
Because anger was easier than guilt.
"What does Alexander have to do with Sterling?"
Victor opened another file.
"Everything."
"The company was supposed to be his."
Ryan looked surprised.
"But Victoria owns it."
"Exactly."
Victor leaned forward.
"Which means if Alexander returns..."
"The entire structure changes."
Ryan understood.
A new plan formed.
"What if Alexander becomes the rightful leader?"
Victor smiled.
"Now you are thinking."
That night.
I traveled to the private location where Alexander had been living.
A quiet place away from the world.
When he opened the door.
He looked exactly like the last time I saw him.
Older.
Tired.
But still my brother.
"Victoria."
My eyes filled with tears.
"Alex."
For a moment.
Neither of us spoke.
Then he pulled me into a hug.
The kind of hug only family could give.
"You shouldn't have come."
"I had to."
He looked worried.
"Did someone find me?"
I didn't answer.
He already knew.
"Victor."
I nodded.
Alexander looked away.
"I knew this day would come."
"Why didn't you tell me everything?"
Pain crossed his face.
"Because I was trying to protect you."
I swallowed.
"Everyone keeps saying that."
"But nobody tells me the truth."
He looked at me.
Then he said the words I had waited seven years to hear.
"Victoria."
"Your parents didn't die in an accident."
The room became silent.
My heart stopped.
"What?"
Alexander took a deep breath.
"They were killed."
"And the person responsible..."
May you like
He looked directly into my eyes.
"Has been standing near Sterling Global this entire time."
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