CHAPTER 13: THE MAN WHO WOULDN'T TOUCH THE GLASS
Adrian's hand remained suspended above the crystal.
For only a second.
Most people would never have noticed.
Victor did.
A lifetime of surviving betrayals had taught him that the smallest hesitation often carried the loudest truth.
Then Adrian smiled.
The warm, fatherly smile that had comforted Victor as a child.
"I don't know what you mean."
Victor lifted his own glass.
"I've served this vintage many times."
"So have I."
Adrian finally picked up the crystal.
His fingers wrapped around the stem.
Steady.
Controlled.
But he didn't drink.
Instead, he gently swirled the wine.
Buying time.
Victor noticed.
"You've become cautious."
Adrian chuckled.
"Age does that."
Victor raised his glass.
"To old friends."
Their glasses touched.
A soft chime echoed across the dining room.
Victor took a sip.
Adrian only pretended to.
The wine never reached his lips.
Across the room...
Marcus watched through a hidden security camera.
Beside him stood Harold, the old family archivist.
Marcus whispered,
"He didn't drink."
Harold nodded.
"He was afraid."
Marcus frowned.
"Afraid of poison?"
Harold looked thoughtful.
"Or afraid of remembering."
Back at the table...
Victor calmly placed his glass down.
"I visited Isabella's archives today."
Adrian's smile faded almost imperceptibly.
"You've avoided those files for years."
"I know."
"What changed?"
Victor answered honestly.
"My son."
Silence settled between them.
Adrian looked toward the fireplace.
"Ethan is a strong child."
Victor replied quietly,
"Stronger than we realized."
He reached into his pocket.
Removed the catering receipt.
Placed it on the table.
Adrian looked down.
He recognized it immediately.
Victor saw recognition flash through his eyes.
"Serena borrowed the crystal collection that night."
Adrian slowly nodded.
"So the records say."
"You knew?"
"I organized part of the event."
Victor leaned forward.
"Then tell me..."
"...why would a guest organize serving glasses?"
Adrian didn't answer immediately.
Instead...
He finally took a sip of wine.
Just enough to avoid appearing nervous.
"She volunteered."
"Isabella trusted her."
Victor nodded slowly.
"So did I."
At Blackwood Memorial Hospital...
Ethan had fallen asleep again.
Lily quietly adjusted his blanket.
A gentle knock came at the door.
Dr. Harrison entered.
"I have something."
He handed Lily a small transparent evidence bag.
Inside...
A tiny silver button.
Lily looked confused.
"What is this?"
"It was trapped inside Ethan's blanket."
She frowned.
"I've never seen it."
Dr. Harrison nodded.
"Neither have I."
"The forensic lab examined it."
"And?"
"It's from a custom-made suit."
"Very expensive."
"Limited production."
Lily looked closer.
Engraved on the back of the button...
Was a tiny emblem.
A crown.
Wrapped by a serpent.
Her heart stopped.
The same symbol.
The Consortium.
Meanwhile...
A Blackwood intelligence analyst burst into Marcus's surveillance room.
"Sir!"
Marcus turned.
"What?"
"We identified the dead infiltrator from the hospital."
Marcus frowned.
"I thought he had no identity."
"He doesn't."
"But..."
The analyst swallowed.
"We matched his DNA."
Marcus looked stunned.
"To who?"
The analyst hesitated.
"To Daniel Ashcroft."
Marcus stared.
"That's impossible."
"The man underground was Daniel."
The analyst slowly shook his head.
"No."
"The dead doctor..."
"...was Daniel's biological son."
Marcus immediately called Victor.
The phone vibrated silently on the dinner table.
Victor glanced at the screen.
Marcus.
He answered.
"What?"
Marcus didn't waste time.
"Boss."
"We've made a DNA match."
Victor listened silently.
Then...
His expression changed.
Very slightly.
Adrian noticed.
"Everything alright?"
Victor looked directly at him.
"My evening just became more interesting."
He ended the call.
Adrian studied his face.
"What happened?"
Victor answered without emotion.
"Daniel had a son."
For the first time...
Adrian genuinely looked surprised.
"He... had a child?"
Victor nodded.
"He died today."
Adrian slowly lowered his eyes.
"That's unfortunate."
Victor watched him carefully.
There was sorrow.
Real sorrow.
Not fear.
Not calculation.
Sorrow.
Something didn't fit.
Hundreds of miles away...
Inside a private mountain lodge...
A woman in her seventies sat before a stone fireplace.
Elegant.
Silver-haired.
Sharp-eyed.
She read a newspaper reporting the attempted kidnapping of Ethan Blackwood.
A young man entered.
"They failed."
She didn't look up.
"I know."
"Should we intervene?"
She folded the newspaper.
"No."
"They've already begun turning on each other."
The young man hesitated.
"And Victor?"
She smiled faintly.
"He's finally asking the right questions."
She reached into an old wooden box.
Inside lay a faded family photograph.
Alexander Blackwood.
Daniel Ashcroft.
Adrian.
A young woman.
And...
A little girl of about six.
The elderly woman gently touched the girl's face.
"So many years..."
She whispered.
"You deserve to know the truth too."
Back at Blackwood Manor...
Dinner had ended.
Adrian stood near the entrance.
Victor accompanied him outside.
Cold night air filled the courtyard.
Adrian adjusted his coat.
"I hope Ethan recovers."
Victor nodded.
"So do I."
Adrian extended his hand.
Victor shook it.
Firmly.
As Adrian walked toward his car...
Victor quietly spoke.
"One last thing."
Adrian turned.
Victor held up the small silver button recovered from Ethan's blanket.
"Have you ever seen this?"
Adrian looked at it.
His face remained calm.
Too calm.
"No."
Victor smiled politely.
"I thought you'd say that."
Adrian entered his limousine.
The vehicle disappeared through the gates.
Marcus stepped out from the shadows.
"Boss?"
Victor looked down at his own hand.
During the handshake...
He had discreetly brushed forensic transfer powder onto Adrian's palm.
Marcus understood immediately.
"If he touches anything..."
Victor nodded.
"We'll know everywhere he goes tonight."
At that exact moment...
Marcus's tablet chimed.
The GPS tracker hidden in the transfer powder had activated.
A blinking dot appeared on the city map.
Victor frowned.
Adrian wasn't heading home.
He wasn't going to his office.
He wasn't visiting the hospital.
Instead...
The signal was moving toward an abandoned cemetery on the outskirts of Chicago.
Marcus looked up.
"The cemetery?"
Victor stared at the screen.
Then whispered,
"No..."
His pulse slowed.
Because he recognized the location immediately.
It wasn't just any cemetery.
It was where...
May you like
Daniel Ashcroft had supposedly been buried twenty-two years ago.
END OF CHAPTER 13
