Chapter 13 - The Last MemoryVictor inserted the disk.
A video appeared.
His mother was sitting in the old library.
Young Victor stood beside her.
She was crying.
“Victor, you have to remember this.”
Young Victor looked confused.
“What?”
“Your father wants you to believe your brother died.”
Victor watched in silence.
His mother continued.
“You have three brothers.”
Victor’s eyes widened.
“Three?”
“Yes.”
She looked toward the camera.
“And one sister.”
Lily stared.
“Me.”
Victor nodded slowly.
The recording continued.
“Your father created Project Eve because he wanted a family he could control.”
His mother lowered her voice.
“But I found the records.”
A man entered the room.
Victor’s father.
His mother immediately pushed young Victor behind her.
“You must never tell him where Gabriel is.”
Young Victor nodded.
Then a gunshot.
His mother fell.
Victor screamed.
The video ended.
Victor looked at Lily.
“That’s what I saw.”
“Yes.”
“My father erased my memory.”
“He tried.”
Victor looked at the clock.
11:41 PM.
“Where is Ethan?”
A voice answered behind them.
“Here.”
Adrian stood in the doorway.
Ethan was beside him.
Victor raised his gun.
“Give me my son.”
Adrian shook his head.
“You still don’t understand.”
“Understand what?”
“Ethan is not the target.”
Victor stared.
“What?”
“You are.”
Adrian revealed a device.
“The trust activates if you die.”
Victor looked at Lily.
“But my father wants Ethan.”
“No.”
Adrian shook his head.
“He wants the trust before the truth becomes public.”
Victor realized the plan.
If Victor died, Ethan would inherit.
If Ethan died, the trust would collapse.
Either way, the family would lose control.
“Then why kidnap Ethan?”
“To force you into the open.”
Adrian pointed toward the hallway.
A red light blinked.
“Your father is already here.”
Victor turned.
His father appeared at the far end.
Surrounded by armed men.
The old man looked at Ethan.
“Bring him to me.”
Nobody moved.
Adrian smiled.
“You see?”
Victor looked at him.
“The guards aren’t yours.”
They suddenly turned their weapons toward Victor’s father.
The old man froze.
“What have you done?”
Adrian answered:
“Changed the system.”
Lily stepped forward.
“The files under the mansion were copied.”
Victor looked at her.
“You accessed them?”
“Every single one.”
Adrian nodded.
“And tomorrow morning, every secret your father buried will be public.”
His grandfather stared at them.
“You think people will believe you?”
Lily raised her phone.
“They already have.”
She showed him a live broadcast.
Thousands of viewers were watching.
The scandal was spreading across the internet.
Victor’s father’s empire was collapsing in real time.
The old man laughed.
“You’re too late.”
He pulled out a detonator.
Victor grabbed Ethan.
“What did you do?”
“I built this house to survive war.”
He pressed the button.
The underground chamber exploded.
The mansion began collapsing.
Victor shoved Lily toward the exit.
“Run!”
Adrian shouted:
“Dad!”
Victor turned.
His father stood beneath the falling ceiling.
And for the first time, he looked afraid.
“Victor!”
The floor shattered.
Victor reached for him.
But his father fell into the darkness.
The house went silent.
Then Ethan whispered:
“Daddy?”
Victor looked at his son.
Ethan was holding something.
A small gold key.
Victor’s blood turned cold.
“Where did you get that?”
May you like
Ethan looked toward the rubble.
“Grandpa gave it to me.”
