Chapter 9 - THE BETRAYAL
Arthur refused to believe the footage.
He demanded forensic analysis.
The results were devastating.
The video had not been altered.
His father had been present.
Victor had been present.
And Arthur had been there too.
But Arthur remembered nothing.
Daniel discovered something hidden in Arthur's medical records.
A neurological treatment.
Twenty years earlier.
Arthur had undergone experimental memory therapy after a severe accident.
The treatment had erased several months of memory.
Including the night Sarah disappeared.
Arthur stared at the file.
“They erased my memory.”
Samuel nodded.
“Your father authorized it.”
Arthur's voice broke.
“Why?”
“Because you witnessed something you weren't supposed to see.”
Emily asked:
“What?”
Samuel looked toward Lily.
“You witnessed your father giving Sarah a child.”
Arthur's eyes widened.
“Ethan?”
“No.”
Samuel pointed toward Lily.
“You witnessed him giving Lily to Sarah.”
Emily stared.
“That means…”
Arthur finished the sentence.
“Lily was born into the Sterling family.”
A sudden explosion shook the building.
The lights went out.
Daniel shouted.
“Everyone down!”
Glass shattered.
The boardroom descended into chaos.
Arthur pulled Lily behind a table.
Emily covered her.
Then Victor appeared on the emergency monitor.
He was smiling.
“You should have stayed on the sidewalk, Arthur.”
Arthur looked at the screen.
“What do you want?”
“The girl.”
Arthur tightened his arms around Lily.
“No.”
Victor smiled.
“Then I'll take the company instead.”
The screen went black.
Every computer in the building shut down.
Bank accounts were frozen.
Company shares crashed.
News outlets immediately reported that Arthur Sterling had lost control of Sterling Global.
Within minutes, his fortune began disappearing.
Arthur looked at Emily.
“I may have nothing left.”
Emily answered:
“You still have us.”
Arthur looked at Lily.
The girl who had given him a burger when he had pretended to have nothing.
For the first time in decades, Arthur smiled.
“Then I have enough.”
But outside the building, another car waited.
Inside sat Victor.
Beside him was a woman.
Emily recognized her from the photograph.
She was supposed to be dead.
Emily whispered:
“Sarah.”
May you like
Victor smiled.
“Now we're ready.”
