Chapter 9: The Woman Everyone Suspected
The final words from the speaker echoed through the mechanical room.
"Do not trust the woman carrying your child."
Then the connection died.
Only static remained.
But the damage was already done.
Julian stood completely still.
Not because he believed Lorenzo Rossi.
Not because he suddenly thought Elena was guilty.
But because he knew one terrifying truth:
Someone had spent months building a maze around him.
Every path led to another secret.
Every answer created another question.
And now...
Even the woman he loved had become a piece on the board.
Elena looked at him.
Her eyes were filled with fear.
Not fear of accusation.
Fear of losing him again.
"Julian..."
He didn't respond immediately.
That hesitation hurt her more than anger would have.
She slowly released his hand.
"I understand."
His eyes moved toward her.
"What?"
"You don't know what to believe."
"No."
His answer was honest.
And honesty hurt.
Elena looked down.
"After everything..."
Her voice trembled.
"You still don't know if I'm telling the truth."
Julian immediately stepped forward.
"That's not what I said."
"But it's what you feel."
Silence.
Because she was right.
Marco watched them carefully.
He had seen Julian survive corporate wars.
He had seen him negotiate with people who would destroy entire companies without blinking.
But he had never seen him this lost.
Because this wasn't a battle against an enemy.
This was a battle against uncertainty.
Marco turned toward Adrian.
"You knew Lorenzo Rossi was alive."
Adrian said nothing.
"Answer me."
A faint smile appeared on Adrian's face.
"I suspected."
"You suspected?"
"Lorenzo was never easy to kill."
Julian looked at him.
"Kill?"
Adrian shrugged.
"Disappear. Hide. Escape."
"Choose your preferred word."
Victoria suddenly stepped forward.
"You knew my father survived?"
Adrian looked at her.
"Yes."
Victoria's face changed.
"You lied to me too."
Adrian smiled.
"You believed you were controlling the game."
"I was."
"No."
He looked around.
"You were another player."
A sudden cry interrupted them.
Elena.
Everyone turned.
She had grabbed the side of the generator for support.
Julian rushed to her.
"Another contraction?"
She nodded.
Struggling to breathe.
"It's getting stronger."
Marco immediately made a decision.
"We move now."
One of his men checked the route.
"Commander, the west exit is blocked."
"East?"
"Compromised."
"Roof?"
"Helicopter pad damaged."
Marco looked frustrated.
"We need another option."
Elena whispered:
"There is one."
Everyone looked at her.
Julian held her shoulders.
"What?"
"The old service tunnel."
Victoria frowned.
"The tunnel was closed years ago."
"I cleaned it."
Elena breathed slowly.
"The hotel has an underground delivery route."
Marco looked at her.
"Where does it lead?"
"Outside the city."
Julian stared at his wife.
"You knew this hotel better than anyone."
A small, sad smile appeared.
"I had eight months to learn."
That sentence broke him.
Eight months.
She wasn't living.
She was surviving.
They moved through the underground passage.
Unlike the luxurious hotel above...
This place was forgotten.
Old pipes.
Dusty walls.
Abandoned equipment.
The hidden skeleton beneath the perfect image.
Julian walked beside Elena, supporting her every step.
After several minutes, he finally spoke.
"Why didn't you tell me about the Rossi trust?"
She remained quiet.
"I deserve the truth."
"I know."
"Then why hide it?"
Elena stopped.
Because she was exhausted.
Because she was scared.
Because she had carried too much alone.
"Because I didn't know if you loved me..."
She looked at him.
"...or if you loved what I represented."
Julian looked wounded.
"What?"
"The Rossi heir."
"The company."
"The family name."
"Everyone around us cared about those things."
Her voice cracked.
"I needed to know that you would choose me even if I gave you nothing."
Julian stared at her.
Then he whispered:
"Elena."
He gently touched her face.
"I lost everything when you disappeared."
"Do you understand?"
"The company kept running."
"The money kept coming."
"The world kept calling me successful."
"But every night..."
His voice broke.
"I came home to a house that felt like a museum."
"Every room reminded me that you were gone."
"I didn't miss a wife."
"I missed my family."
Elena's eyes filled with tears.
"I wanted to come back."
"Then why didn't you?"
"Because..."
She hesitated.
"Because I saw something."
"What?"
"The night before I left."
She looked away.
"I saw you with Adrian."
Julian frowned.
"You told me that."
"No."
Her expression became painful.
"I didn't tell you everything."
His heart sank.
"What else?"
She remembered that night.
Rain against the windows.
Julian's office lights still on.
She had followed him after seeing him leave the mansion.
She wasn't spying.
She was worried.
Julian had been distant.
Stressed.
Exhausted.
When she arrived near the office building...
She saw him speaking with Adrian.
But she wasn't close enough to hear everything.
Then...
She saw Adrian hand Julian an envelope.
Julian opened it.
His face changed.
Anger.
Shock.
Fear.
Then Julian said:
"If anyone touches her..."
A pause.
"...I will destroy them."
Elena froze.
She didn't hear the rest.
She only saw Adrian walk away.
And Julian burn the envelope.
She thought...
He was hiding something.
"I thought you knew."
Julian looked confused.
"Knew what?"
"That Adrian was threatening me."
"I didn't."
"Then why did you meet him?"
Julian closed his eyes.
The memory returned.
"The envelope."
"What was inside?"
He looked at her.
"Pictures."
Her face changed.
"Of me?"
"No."
He swallowed.
"Of you."
Silence.
"He showed me photos of you being followed."
Elena froze.
"What?"
Julian nodded.
"He told me someone was watching you."
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I was trying to find out who."
"And you trusted Adrian?"
"No."
Julian's expression hardened.
"I was pretending to."
Everything changed.
The misunderstanding that destroyed eight months of their lives...
Was built on a conversation neither of them fully understood.
Elena covered her mouth.
"I thought you betrayed me."
Julian shook his head.
"I thought you abandoned me."
They looked at each other.
Two people who had spent months grieving the same love from opposite sides.
Then Marco suddenly raised his hand.
"Stop."
Everyone froze.
He pointed toward the tunnel ahead.
Footsteps.
Multiple people.
Coming toward them.
Marco whispered:
"We have company."
The lights above flickered.
A group appeared at the end of the tunnel.
Not Adrian's men.
Not police.
Not security.
They wore expensive suits.
The leader stepped forward.
An elderly man.
Silver hair.
Cold eyes.
Julian immediately recognized him from old family portraits.
A face he had seen as a child.
A face he believed belonged only to history.
Lorenzo Rossi.
Alive.
The old man looked directly at Elena.
Then at Julian.
And finally...
At the child she carried.
"You have no idea what you are carrying."
Julian stepped in front of Elena.
"Stay away from my family."
Lorenzo smiled faintly.
"Family?"
He looked at Victoria.
"Your mother never told you."
Julian's expression tightened.
"Told me what?"
Lorenzo's eyes moved back to Elena.
"The child is not only the Rossi heir."
A pause.
"The child is evidence."
Julian frowned.
"Evidence of what?"
Lorenzo answered:
"That your wife was never just a victim."
Elena's face went pale.
Julian looked at her.
And for the first time...
May you like
He wondered if there was a part of Elena's story he truly didn't know.
End of Chapter 9
