Chapter 4: The Man Who Sold My Life
Adrian left the dining room ten minutes later.
He claimed he needed to take an important business call.
But everyone in the mansion knew the truth.
He was running.
And for the first time in months, I was the person he was afraid of.
I returned to my office and closed the door behind me.
The room looked exactly the same as it had before my accident.
Dark wooden shelves.
Family photographs.
Awards from years of building Blackwood International.
Everything remained untouched.
Except me.
I sat behind my desk and opened the hidden drawer beneath it.
Inside was a small recording device.
The first thing I did after realizing Victoria was hiding something was prepare for the possibility that everyone around me was lying.
I pressed the button.
Adrian’s voice filled the room.
“You need to stop investigating.””
I froze.
The recording was from three weeks earlier.
Another voice answered.
Victoria.
“You promised me it would be finished.””
“I said it would be handled,” Adrian replied.
“Ethan is recovering.””
A pause.
Then Adrian said something that made my blood run cold.
“He was never supposed to walk again.””
I stopped the recording.
The silence afterward felt unbearable.
My brother’s words repeated in my mind.
He was never supposed to walk again.
Martha found me standing there minutes later.
“Mr. Blackwood?””
I turned.
She looked worried.
“I heard enough.””
I nodded.
“Martha, I need you to tell me everything you know.””
She hesitated.
Then slowly closed the office door.
“I was afraid.””
“Of Adrian?””
She nodded.
“After your accident, he started acting like this house already belonged to him.””
She sat down.
“He changed security codes. He moved financial records. He told employees that you would never return.””
I clenched my jaw.
“He said that?””
Martha looked down.
“He said, ‘Ethan’s story is over.’”
Those words hurt more than I expected.
Because they came from someone who shared my blood.
I walked to the window.
Outside, the Blackwood estate stretched across acres of land.
A place my grandfather built.
A place my father protected.
A place my brother tried to steal.
“Where is Adrian now?”” I asked.
Martha looked nervous.
“He went to the west wing.””
“Why?””
She swallowed.
“Because that’s where your father kept the old company records.””
My eyes narrowed.
The old records.
Before my father died, he told me something strange.
He said:
“Never trust someone who wants your position more than they want your happiness.””
At the time, I thought he was talking about business.
Now I wondered if he was warning me about Adrian.
I walked toward the west wing.
The door was slightly open.
Inside, I heard voices.
Adrian.
And another man.
I stopped outside.
“You promised me this would be done,” Adrian said.
The other man answered.
“You’re getting nervous.””
“I’m not nervous.””
“You should be.””
I slowly pushed the door open.
Both men turned.
Adrian froze.
The other man looked equally shocked.
Because I recognized him immediately.
My chief financial officer, Daniel Cross.
The man who handled every major transaction in my company.
The man who told the board I needed time to recover.
The man who had access to everything.
Adrian stepped forward.
“Ethan, this isn’t what it looks like.””
I looked at the two people standing in front of me.
“My brother.””
Then I looked at Daniel.
“My employee.””
I smiled coldly.
“Interesting combination.””
Daniel tried to speak.
“Mr. Blackwood, you don’t understand—”
“No.””
I raised my hand.
“You’re right.””
I looked around the room.
“Because I still don’t understand one thing.””
I stepped closer.
“If you two planned my accident…”
I looked directly at Adrian.
“Why did you leave evidence behind?””
Adrian’s expression changed.
“What evidence?””
I smiled.
Because that was the reaction I wanted.
He had just admitted there was evidence.
And he didn’t even realize it.
I pulled out my phone.
On the screen was a message recovered from an old company server.
A message Adrian thought he deleted forever.
His own words.
The plan.
The money.
The date.
Everything.
Adrian stared at the screen.
His confidence disappeared.
Daniel took a step backward.
But before I could call security, Adrian reached into his pocket.
Not for a weapon.
Not for a fight.
For something much worse.
A small envelope.
He placed it on the desk.
“You want the truth, Ethan?””
His voice became quiet.
“Then open this.””
I looked at the envelope.
Written across the front were four words.
May you like
Words that made my entire body go cold.
*Your father knew everything.*
