CHAPTER 10: THE UNCLE WHO BUILT THE LIE
For several seconds, Marcus Thorne couldn’t move.
He couldn’t speak.
He couldn’t even process the name he had just heard.
Victor.
His uncle.
The man who had been beside him after his father’s death.
The man who had taught him how to run a company.
The man who had always said:
“Family protects family.”
Marcus slowly turned toward his mother.
“You’re lying.”
Evelyn Thorne looked at him with tired eyes.
“I wish I was.”
“No.”
His voice became harder.
“You don’t get to do this.”
“Do what?”
“Throw another person under the bus because you’re afraid.”
Evelyn looked hurt.
But she didn’t look surprised.
Because she knew Marcus would react this way.
“He was your uncle.”
Marcus stepped closer.
“And you were my mother.”
The words cut deep.
“I trusted both of you.”
Evelyn looked down.
“I know.”
“Then tell me the truth.”
Silence.
“Did Victor kill my father?”
Evelyn closed her eyes.
And that small reaction told Marcus everything.
At the same time, inside a private office across the city, Victor Thorne watched the news reports about the investigation.
His face remained calm.
But his hands were clenched.
He knew.
The truth was moving faster than he expected.
And once the truth started moving…
It could not be stopped.
His phone rang.
He answered without looking.
“You took too long.”
The voice on the other end was familiar.
Cold.
Controlled.
Isabella Rossi.
Victor’s expression changed slightly.
“You should not be calling me.”
“Why?”
A bitter laugh.
“Because now everyone is looking at me?”
Victor remained silent.
Isabella continued.
“You promised me Marcus would never discover the truth.”
“I promised you nothing.”
Her breathing changed.
“You used me.”
“No.”
Victor’s voice became colder.
“You used yourself.”
A pause.
“You were always greedy enough to believe you could control everything.”
Isabella’s anger exploded.
“I did what you asked!”
“And you failed.”
The words were brutal.
“You attacked Khloe.”
“You told me she had to be removed.”
“I told you to create doubt.”
Victor’s voice hardened.
“Not a crime scene.”
Silence.
Isabella realized something.
“You’re abandoning me.”
“No.”
A pause.
“I’m protecting myself.”
The call ended.
Isabella stared at her phone.
And for the first time, she understood.
Victor Thorne was not her partner.
He was her biggest threat.
Back at the family estate, Marcus demanded answers.
“Start from the beginning.”
Evelyn looked at the old fireplace.
The same fireplace where Marcus sat as a child listening to stories about his father.
“I married your father because I loved him.”
Marcus remained silent.
“But Richard was not a perfect man.”
“What does that mean?”
“He trusted too easily.”
A pause.
“And Victor knew that.”
Marcus frowned.
“My father trusted him.”
“Yes.”
Evelyn looked at him.
“That was his biggest mistake.”
She walked toward an old cabinet and removed a small box.
Inside were documents.
Photos.
Letters.
“I kept these because I knew one day you would need them.”
Marcus looked at the contents.
The first document was dated three months before his father’s death.
A meeting record.
Richard Thorne.
Victor Thorne.
Daniel Cross.
And Isabella Rossi.
All together.
Marcus’s face changed.
“They were all connected.”
Evelyn nodded.
“Your father discovered they were moving money through hidden accounts.”
“Why didn’t he go to the police?”
“Because he thought he could fix it quietly.”
She looked away.
“He believed family problems should stay inside the family.”
Marcus laughed bitterly.
“And that got him killed.”
Evelyn didn’t answer.
Because she couldn’t deny it.
Meanwhile, Khloe received a visitor at the hospital.
A woman she had never met before.
The nurse introduced her.
“Mrs. Thorne, this is Detective Lauren Hayes.”
Khloe looked confused.
“Detective?”
Lauren nodded.
“I’m investigating the attack.”
Khloe immediately became alert.
“Is there a problem?”
“No.”
The detective sat down.
“Actually, there is something you need to know.”
Khloe looked at her.
“What?”
Lauren opened a file.
“Isabella Rossi wasn’t planning to just hurt you.”
Khloe’s stomach tightened.
“What do you mean?”
“She researched your medical schedule.”
A pause.
“She knew exactly when you would be alone.”
Khloe felt a chill.
“She planned this.”
“Yes.”
The detective looked serious.
“But that’s not the strangest part.”
“What is?”
Lauren placed another document on the table.
“Someone accessed your hospital records two days before the attack.”
Khloe frowned.
“Who?”
The detective looked at the name.
Then back at her.
“Someone from inside the Thorne family.”
Khloe’s face went pale.
“Who?”
Lauren hesitated.
Then answered:
“Victor Thorne.”
Marcus returned to the hospital just as Khloe finished speaking with the detective.
The moment he entered the room, he knew something was wrong.
“What happened?”
Khloe looked at him.
“Marcus.”
Her voice was quiet.
“Detective Hayes found something.”
He walked closer.
“What?”
She looked toward the detective.
Lauren stood.
“Mr. Thorne.”
Marcus immediately became serious.
“Yes?”
“We found evidence connecting your uncle to the attack.”
The room went silent.
Marcus stared at her.
“No.”
Lauren didn’t react.
“I understand this is difficult.”
“No.”
His voice became louder.
“You don’t understand.”
He shook his head.
“My uncle raised me.”
Lauren nodded.
“I know.”
“Then you know he wouldn’t do this.”
The detective looked at him.
“People often say that about the people who betray them.”
Those words hurt.
Because deep down…
Marcus knew she was right.
That night, Marcus returned to his office alone.
He needed proof.
Not emotions.
Not accusations.
Proof.
He opened the company security system.
He searched every file.
Every account.
Every hidden record.
Then he found something.
A private transaction.
A transfer made six months earlier.
The receiver:
Victor Thorne.
The sender:
A company connected to Isabella Rossi.
Marcus stared at the screen.
His breathing became heavy.
Then another file appeared.
A hidden recording.
Created three days before the hospital attack.
Marcus clicked play.
At first, there was only silence.
Then a voice.
Victor.
“If Khloe disappears, Marcus will break.”
Isabella’s voice answered.
“And the company?”
Victor replied:
“Will finally belong to us.”
Marcus stopped breathing.
His hand moved away from the mouse.
Because now he had the proof.
The betrayal.
The plan.
The truth.
His own uncle had tried to destroy his wife.
His child.
His family.
Then the recording continued.
Victor said one final sentence.
A sentence that changed everything.
“After Marcus loses everything…”
A pause.
“We take the entire Thorne empire.”
Marcus slowly stood.
His eyes filled with anger.
But before he could do anything…
His computer screen went black.
A message appeared.
YOU WERE NEVER SUPPOSED TO FIND THIS.
Marcus stared.
Then another line appeared.
NOW YOU KNOW TOO MUCH.
The office lights suddenly turned off.
And in the darkness…
Someone whispered behind him:
“Marcus.”
He turned around.
And froze.
Because the person standing there was the last person he expected.
May you like
His father.
TO BE CONTINUED...
