Chapter 10 - The Truth About NorthbridgeWhen the lights came back on, Victor was gone.
The door was open.
I ran.
I found myself in a warehouse filled with computers, files, and locked cabinets.
Daniel suddenly appeared.
“Jenny!”
“What are you doing here?”
“I followed them.”
“Where's Mom?”
“Still at the house.”
“And Steve?”
“Gone.”
Then Harold appeared.
“Good. You're both alive.”
I glared at him.
“You knew this would happen.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because Victor wanted you frightened enough to surrender.”
“Surrender what?”
Harold looked at me.
“The final key.”
“What key?”
He handed me a document.
Your father had created a digital vault containing evidence of every transaction Northbridge had made.
He locked it using three pieces of information.
One was held by Mom.
One by Harold.
One by me.
“How?”
“The password was based on something only you would know.”
“What?”
Harold smiled sadly.
“Your childhood nickname.”
I froze.
Dad had called me Starling.
I typed it.
The computer unlocked.
Thousands of files appeared.
I opened the first.
Northbridge had been involved in dozens of illegal deals.
Politicians.
Developers.
Bankers.
Executives.
And Steve.
My sister's husband had been part of it for years.
But then I found something worse.
A folder titled:
PROJECT JENNY.
I clicked.
The first file was from before I was born.
Dad had created a long-term plan to secure the family's wealth under my name.
Not because I was his favorite.
Because he believed everyone else would eventually betray each other.
He was right.
The plan showed that the house I had bought was already assigned to me through the trust.
The million dollars I paid had been reimbursed through hidden accounts.
I stared.
“I never paid for the house.”
Harold nodded.
“The money came back.”
“What?”
“You were buying an asset you already owned.”
I felt sick.
“So my six years of sacrifice…”
“Were part of the cover.”
“Who arranged it?”
Harold looked at the screen.
“Your mother.”
I couldn't breathe.
“She wanted you to believe you earned it alone.”
“Why?”
“So you wouldn't ask where the original money came from.”
I kept scrolling.
Then I found a video.
Mom appeared onscreen.
She looked much younger.
She spoke to Dad.
“You're going to put everything in her name?”
“Yes.”
“What happens when she finds out?”
“She won't.”
“What if she does?”
Dad's answer was chilling.
“Then she'll know exactly who loves her.”
The recording ended.
I stared at Harold.
“Dad knew Mom would betray him.”
“Yes.”
“And still trusted her?”
“No.”
He pointed at the screen.
“He trusted you.”
Before I could respond, an alarm began screaming.
Someone had entered the building.
Harold looked toward the door.
“We have three minutes.”
“To do what?”
He handed me the USB drive.
“Release everything.”
I stared at him.
“Everything?”
“All of it.”
“And what happens to my family?”
Harold's eyes hardened.
“That depends on who is guilty.”
A voice came through the speakers.
“Jenny.”
Mom.
“You really should have listened.”
Then another voice joined hers.
Lucy.
May you like
And Lucy said something that made my heart stop.
“Jenny, I'm sorry.”
