Chapter 4 - The Man in the Shadows Who Claimed to Be Her Grandfather
Lucien's death should have made me feel safe.
Instead, it made everything worse.
Someone powerful enough to kill Lucien was now hunting me.
Adrien doubled security.
I hated it.
He noticed.
“You don't like being watched.”
“No.”
“Neither do I.”
“Then why do you do it?”
“Because you matter.”
The words were quiet.
They stayed with me.
We visited my father in the hospital.
He woke that afternoon.
When he saw me, he cried.
“I'm sorry.”
I sat beside him.
“For what?”
“For letting you believe you were nothing.”
My throat tightened.
“Was that deliberate?”
“Yes.”
I stared.
“Why?”
“Because I was afraid you'd become a target.”
I laughed bitterly.
“I was already a target.”
He closed his eyes.
“I know.”
Then he told me the truth.
When I was born, my grandfather named me heir.
My father wanted Victoria to inherit.
My mother tried to convince him otherwise.
He refused.
So they created the illusion that Victoria was the only legitimate heir.
I was removed from public records.
My grandfather feared that even my existence could trigger a war.
So he entrusted me to my mother.
But when he disappeared, my parents used the secret to manipulate me.
My father controlled me with distance.
My mother controlled me with guilt.
Victoria controlled me with comparison.
And I had spent my whole life wondering why I could never earn enough love.
I couldn't.
Because they weren't trying to love me.
They were trying to manage me.
Then my father gave me one final piece of information.
“Your grandfather left you something.”
“What?”
“A letter.”
“Where?”
“Inside the old church on Benton Street.”
Adrien looked at him.
“The church?”
My father nodded.
“Under the third pew.”
We went there that night.
The church was empty.
I found the hidden compartment.
Inside was a letter.
Dear Elena,
I am sorry you had to grow up believing you were forgotten.
You were never forgotten.
You were hidden because you were precious.
I don't expect you to forgive your parents.
But I need you to understand why.
The Whitmore Trust was never created for wealth.
It was created to protect people.
Your great-grandfather built the original shipping network to provide jobs after the war.
Criminals later took control.
Your father became one of them.
But you don't have to.
The final paragraph shook me.
There is only 1 man I trust to stand beside you if the truth is discovered.
Adrien Volkov.
My heart stopped.
Adrien read the letter silently.
“Your grandfather knew my family.”
“Yes.”
“But he couldn't know…”
“You hadn't met me.”
“I know.”
He looked at me.
“Yet somehow he still trusted me.”
I smiled sadly.
“Maybe he saw something in your family I never saw in mine.”
Adrien touched my cheek.
Very gently.
I froze.
Then he withdrew his hand.
“I'm sorry.”
“No.”
I looked at him.
“It was okay.”
His eyes softened.
“Good.”
We returned to the penthouse.
But someone was waiting.
Ethan.
My former boyfriend.
The man I thought had abandoned me.
He looked different.
Harder.
Older.
He raised his hands.
“I don't want to hurt you.”
Adrien drew his weapon.
“Then explain.”
Ethan looked at me.
“I worked for Lucien.”
I swallowed.
“I know.”
“But I wasn't loyal to him.”
“Then why?”
“To find your grandfather.”
I stared.
“He was alive?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
Ethan looked at Adrien.
“He has been hiding in Canada.”
My heart pounded.
“Why?”
“Because Lucien wanted him dead.”
“And you?”
“I wanted to get him home.”
Adrien lowered the weapon slightly.
“Who killed Lucien?”
Ethan shook his head.
“I don't know.”
“Then why come here?”
“Because I found the person who ordered your death.”
My blood ran cold.
“Who?”
Ethan looked at me.
“Your mother.”
I couldn't breathe.
Adrien stared.
“No.”
Ethan handed over a recording.
My mother's voice.
She was speaking to an unknown man.
“After the marriage, eliminate Elena.”
I covered my mouth.
My mother had not protected me.
She had been planning to kill me.
Victoria's warnings suddenly made sense.
I looked at Adrien.
“What do I do?”
He answered.
“You survive.”
That night, my mother called.
“Where are you?”
I said nothing.
“Please come home.”
I asked,
“Why did you order my death?”
Silence.
Then she said,
“I had no choice.”
“You always have a choice.”
She began to cry.
“Your father was going to take the trust.”
“And you?”
“I was trying to save Victoria.”
I closed my eyes.
“For once, Mom, you could have tried to save me.”
She whispered,
“I’m sorry.”
Then the line went dead.
A gunshot sounded from the street below.
Adrien pulled me away from the window.
“Down.”
Another shot.
Glass shattered.
I looked at him.
He looked furious.
Not with me.
For me.
And I realized something.
May you like
The family that had hidden me was willing to kill me.
The man they had expected me to fear was the only person standing between me and death.
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