THE BILLIONAIRE TRIED TO FIRE HER—THEN DISCOVERED HER SHOCKING SECRET
Chapter 4
Emma returned as an independent consultant rather than an employee.
She insisted on it.
Adrian agreed.
“No direct reporting line.”
“Fine.”
“No interference with my findings.”
“Fine.”
“And no firing me.”
Adrian looked at her.
“That was one time.”
“Exactly.”
Their investigation expanded.
Richard Blackwell couldn’t be reached.
Neither could the attorney who managed the family trust.
Then Emma found a hidden account.
The account was registered under a charity.
Children’s Horizons Foundation.
Adrian frowned.
“My father founded that.”
“Then why is it receiving money from shell companies?”
“Charity donations?”
“Maybe.”
Emma opened the records.
The amounts were too large.
And the timing was wrong.
“Someone is using the charity to clean money.”
Adrian stared.
“My father would never do that.”
“Maybe not.”
“What about Richard?”
“Possible.”
He leaned against the desk.
“My father died believing the company would be his legacy.”
Emma looked at him.
“Sometimes legacy is built on things people refuse to talk about.”
Adrian frowned.
“What does that mean?”
“It means your father may have known more than you think.”
That evening, Adrian went to his father’s old house.
His mother gave him access to the study.
“You haven’t been here since the funeral.”
“I know.”
The room smelled the same.
Old leather.
Wood.
Dust.
Adrian opened drawers.
Nothing.
Then Emma noticed a painting on the wall.
“That’s new.”
Adrian frowned.
“My father bought it years ago.”
Emma stepped closer.
“There’s a safe behind it.”
He looked at her.
“How do you know?”
“The frame is mounted differently.”
They moved the painting.
A small safe appeared.
Adrian entered his father’s birth date.
Nothing.
Emma tried the date of his father’s first company.
The lock opened.
Inside were financial documents.
And one handwritten letter.
Adrian read it.
His father’s handwriting was unmistakable.
Richard,
I know what you’ve done.
You think I won’t expose you because you’re family.
You’re wrong.
If you touch Adrian, I will destroy the trust before I let you control the company.
Adrian stopped reading.
“Touch me?”
Emma looked at the letter.
“When was this written?”
The date was twelve years earlier.
His father’s death was seven years earlier.
Emma noticed another envelope.
It contained a photograph.
A young Adrian standing beside his father.
Behind them was a woman.
Emma stared.
“Who is she?”
Adrian picked up the photograph.
“I don’t know.”
The woman’s face seemed vaguely familiar.
She was holding a baby.
Adrian turned the photograph over.
Three words were written on the back.
She’s still alive.
Adrian looked at Emma.
“What does that mean?”
“I don’t know.”
They searched the remaining documents.
Nothing.
Then they found another letter.
This one was addressed to Adrian.
He opened it with shaking hands.
Son,
There is something I failed to tell you.
Your entire life, you believed Richard was your only brother.
He isn’t.
Adrian stopped breathing.
Emma stared at him.
“There was another child?”
His father continued.
Your sister is alive.
Her mother’s name is Laura Carter.
And one day, you may meet her.
Adrian looked at Emma.
Her face had gone completely still.
“Laura Carter?”
She whispered the words.
Adrian stared at her.
“Why do you know that name?”
Emma didn’t answer.
He stepped closer.
“Emma.”
She looked at him.
“My mother’s name was Laura Carter.”
Silence.
Adrian felt the room disappear.
Emma was holding the photograph.
The baby.
The woman.
The letter.
Everything suddenly pointed toward one terrifying possibility.
Emma wasn’t just his employee.
She wasn’t just investigating his company.
She might be his sister.
