Billionaire CEO Goes Undercover—And Finds His Company’s Biggest Secret
Chapter 6
Sam Miller lived in a small house outside the city.
He opened the door with a baseball bat in his hands.
When he saw Nathan, he didn’t look surprised.
“You took your time.”
Nathan stared.
“You knew I’d come?”
Sam nodded.
“My sister said you would.”
They entered.
Stacks of documents covered the dining table.
“What is all this?”
“Twenty years of records.”
Sam pointed to a box.
“Your father gave me those.”
Nathan opened it.
Inside were photographs, payroll records, financial reports, and handwritten notes.
He found a file marked:
PROJECT NORTHSTAR — PHASE TWO.
It was a restructuring plan.
The purpose was clear.
Separate Cole Industries from the corrupt subsidiaries.
Expose the hidden accounts.
Remove Victor.
Protect employees.
Nathan stared.
“This wasn’t a takeover.”
“No.”
“It was a cleanup.”
“Yes.”
“Why did it fail?”
Sam looked at him.
“Because your father died before he could finish.”
Nathan swallowed.
“And Victor?”
“He told everyone your father died because of stress.”
Nathan stared at the files.
“Do you think he killed him?”
Sam didn’t answer.
Then Nathan found a photograph.
His father.
Victor.
Another man.
The man was unfamiliar.
Sam pointed.
“That’s Gerald Price.”
“Who is he?”
“Head of internal security.”
Nathan froze.
He recognized the name.
Gerald Price had retired years ago.
Sam continued.
“Your father suspected Gerald worked for Victor.”
Nathan looked at the photo again.
“Then why keep him?”
“Because he couldn’t prove it.”
Nathan’s phone buzzed.
A message from an unknown number.
Come home.
Your mother left you one final thing.
Nathan showed Sam.
Sam frowned.
“Who sent it?”
“No idea.”
“Don’t go alone.”
They returned to Nathan’s apartment.
The message had included an address.
An old storage facility.
Inside, they found a small metal box.
Nathan opened it.
A video file.
His mother appeared on the screen.
She looked much younger.
“Nathan,” she said.
“If you’re seeing this, you’ve discovered the trust.”
Nathan felt his throat tighten.
“I need you to understand something.”
She looked toward the camera.
“Your father never wanted the company to become what it became.”
“He wanted to expose the people responsible.”
“But he was afraid of what would happen to you.”
Nathan closed his eyes.
His mother continued.
“Victor believes money is power.”
“He is wrong.”
“People are power.”
Nathan’s eyes filled.
Then she said the words that changed everything.
“Your father didn’t die because of an accident.”
Nathan stood.
“What?”
His mother continued.
“He was killed.”
The screen went black.
Silence filled the room.
Sam looked at Nathan.
“Now you understand.”
Nathan couldn’t speak.
His father’s death had been murder.
And Victor had been involved.
The next file contained bank transfers.
Payments to Gerald Price.
Payments to a private investigator.
Payments to someone listed only as R-17.
Nathan stared.
“Who is R-17?”
Sam shook his head.
“I don’t know.”
Nathan searched the old company directory.
R-17 wasn’t a department.
It was a code.
Then he recognized the pattern.
His father’s secret operation had used coded identities.
R-17 was one of the protected employees.
Someone who had survived.
Nathan searched the file.
The name appeared.
Richard Coleman.
Nathan knew the name.
Chairman of the board.
The man who had encouraged Nathan to take over after his father’s death.
His stomach dropped.
“The chairman?”
Sam nodded.
“You’re saying he was part of it?”
“Maybe.”
Nathan stared at the documents.
The company’s biggest secret wasn’t one person.
It was an entire network.
Victor.
Gerald.
Richard.
Maybe others.
Then another page appeared.
The beneficiary of the hidden trust.
Nathan Cole.
The trust had accumulated more than $900 million.
Money intended to protect him.
But only one person had access.
Richard Coleman.
Nathan whispered,
“He has controlled my money for twenty years.”
Sam nodded.
“And your family.”
Nathan looked up.
“Then it’s time to take it back.”
