Chapter 4 - Damian’s Most Feared Enemy Admitted He Once Loved My Husband Like a BrotherAdrian told me everything.
Years earlier, Damian and Adrian had worked together.
Not as partners.
As rivals.
Then allies.
Then something closer.
Damian had approached Adrian after his first major business expansion.
He wanted access to illegal shipping routes.
Adrian refused.
Damian kept returning.
Finally, Gideon Voss intervened.
He offered Adrian a deal.
Work with Damian.
Protect his interests.
In return, Adrian would receive control over several ports.
He accepted.
For five years, Damian and Adrian ruled together.
Then Damian changed.
He became obsessed with control.
Adrian warned him.
Damian ignored him.
One night, Damian ordered a hit on one of Adrian's closest people.
Adrian left.
That was the beginning of their war.
“Why didn't you destroy him?”
“I tried.”
“But?”
“He learned faster.”
I looked at him.
“And my father?”
Adrian's expression changed.
“Your father helped me escape.”
“From Damian?”
“Yes.”
“My father knew you.”
“He knew everyone.”
“What did he know?”
“That Gideon was building something larger.”
“What?”
“A network.”
“Financial crime.”
“Political influence.”
“Private security.”
“Corrupt officials.”
My stomach turned.
“And Damian?”
“He was supposed to inherit it.”
“What about me?”
“You were supposed to be his access point to the Mercer trust.”
I sat in silence.
My marriage was never just a marriage.
It was a transaction.
A strategy.
A trap.
I looked at Adrian.
“Did Damian ever love me?”
He took a long time to answer.
“I don't know.”
I appreciated the honesty.
“I think he wanted to.”
“But?”
“He wanted control more.”
That hurt.
Even though I already knew.
We stayed at Adrian's home for two weeks.
He never touched me without asking.
Never entered my room.
Never demanded anything.
He gave me choices.
Food.
Clothes.
Schedules.
Everything.
I had spent three years without choices.
Now every small choice felt enormous.
One evening, we sat on the balcony.
“You're different than I expected.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“What did you expect?”
“A monster.”
“And?”
“Maybe you're still one.”
He smiled.
“Probably.”
“You don't seem offended.”
“I know what I am.”
I looked at him.
“Do you regret it?”
“Every day.”
“What would you change?”
“My first decision.”
“Working with Damian?”
“No.”
He looked at me.
“Believing I could control men like him.”
We became closer.
Not because of attraction.
At first.
Because of trust.
Then something changed.
One evening, I woke from a nightmare.
I found Adrian outside my door.
He didn't enter.
“Are you okay?”
“No.”
He stayed in the hallway.
“Do you want company?”
I nodded.
He sat on the floor outside.
Neither of us spoke.
I eventually fell asleep again.
When I woke, he was still there.
That was the first moment I understood.
Safe didn't always mean locked doors.
Sometimes safe meant someone stayed outside the door and waited for you to wake up.
But Damian wasn't finished.
A video appeared on every major news channel.
It showed me.
Edited footage.
Made to look like I had stolen money from Damian's company.
The headline called me a criminal.
People began searching for me.
Adrian watched the broadcast.
“This is a war.”
“With what?”
“Your reputation.”
I stared at the screen.
“Why?”
“Because if the public believes you're unstable and dishonest, Damian can portray himself as the victim.”
“Can he really do that?”
“He can try.”
“What do we do?”
“Tell the truth.”
“Will anyone believe me?”
“I will.”
I looked at him.
“That's not enough.”
“No.”
He smiled.
“But it's a start.”
We gathered evidence.
Bank records.
Surveillance.
Witness statements.
We prepared everything.
Then Damian made his next move.
He announced that I had voluntarily left the marriage.
He claimed I was suffering from emotional instability.
He said he wanted nothing but my safety.
The public believed him.
Because he was charming.
Rich.
Respected.
I hated him for being good at lying.
Then an unexpected person contacted us.
Lila Moreau.
The woman Damian had been using to manage several hidden businesses.
She wanted to talk.
Alone.
I met her.
She looked exhausted.
“You hate me.”
“Yes.”
“Fair.”
She sat down.
“I was never his lover.”
I stared.
“What?”
“I was his operative.”
“Why tell me?”
“Because I thought he would eventually come after me too.”
“What do you know?”
“Everything.”
She handed me a drive.
“Your father didn't die twelve years ago.”
I froze.
“What?”
“He survived.”
The room tilted.
“Where is he?”
Lila looked at me.
“That's the problem.”
She lowered her voice.
“He's been alive this entire time.”
“And Damian knows.”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
She shook her head.
“I don't know.”
Then she added:
“But Gideon does.”
My blood went cold.
Gideon Voss.
The man everyone believed was dead.
The man controlling Damian.
The man connected to my father's disappearance.
He wasn't just part of the conspiracy.
He was at the center of it.
And according to Lila, he had one reason for keeping my father alive.
He needed something only my father knew.
The location of the Mercer trust's original vault.
May you like
The same vault my father had hidden from everyone.
Including me.
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