Chapter 7 - THE FILE THAT BROUGHT DOWN AN EMPIRE
The Prescott family spent decades building their empire.
Luxury houses.
Powerful friendships.
Private meetings with influential people.
A perfect public image.
They wanted everyone to believe they were untouchable.
But every empire has a weakness.
And the Prescott family’s weakness was the truth they buried.
Three days after the courtroom hearing, Daniel called me before sunrise.
“Victoria.”
I could hear the urgency in his voice.
“We found something.”
I immediately sat up.
“What?”
“The hidden accounts.”
My heart started beating faster.
“Explain.”
Daniel lowered his voice.
“Claire was right.”
“The Prescott family wasn’t just paying people to stay quiet.”
“They were tracking them.”
I looked toward Emily, who was still asleep on the couch.
She had barely slept since everything began.
“What kind of tracking?”
“Every employee.”
“Every person involved in a dispute.”
“Every person who threatened their reputation.”
I closed my eyes.
They didn't just silence people.
They studied them.
Controlled them.
Prepared ways to destroy them.
“Where did you find the records?”
“In a private server connected to Prescott Holdings.”
I stood immediately.
“Can we access it?”
“We already did.”
Daniel paused.
“But there’s something else.”
“What?”
“The files include Emily’s name.”
My entire body froze.
“What do you mean?”
“There were notes about her before the wedding.”
I felt anger rising inside me.
Before the wedding.
They had planned.
Daniel continued.
“They documented her family background.”
“Your military career.”
“Your influence.”
“They knew exactly who you were.”
I stared at the wall.
“They chose her because of me.”
“That’s what it looks like.”
For years, I had protected soldiers.
Protected families.
Protected people who had no one.
But I never imagined my own daughter would become a target because of my name.
When Emily woke up, she saw my expression.
“Mom?”
I turned toward her.
“We found something.”
She immediately became nervous.
“What?”
I sat beside her.
“The Prescott family had information about you before you married Ethan.”
Her face changed.
“They were watching me?”
“Yes.”
The silence that followed hurt more than anger.
Because Emily finally understood.
This wasn't a marriage that went wrong.
It was a situation designed from the beginning.
“They never loved me.”
I reached for her hand.
“Emily.”
She looked at me.
“They loved what I represented.”
That sentence broke something inside me.
Because no child should ever feel like they were chosen for what they could provide.
Only for who they were.
That afternoon, the Prescott family released another public statement.
They denied everything.
They called the investigation a personal attack.
They accused me of destroying a respected American family.
But this time, people were starting to ask questions.
Because the evidence was no longer just Emily’s story.
It was a pattern.
Former employees began speaking.
Former business partners came forward.
People who had stayed silent for years finally found courage.
The Prescott empire began losing control.
And Margaret Prescott knew exactly who was responsible.
Me.
That evening, she sent me a message.
One sentence.
“You should have stopped when you had the chance.”
I looked at the screen.
Then I deleted nothing.
May you like
Because every threat was another piece of evidence.
And Margaret had just given me more.
