Chapter 8 - THE TRUTH HIDDEN INSIDE THE RUSSO FAMILY
Victor Russo had spent his entire life believing he knew exactly who his enemies were.
He was wrong.
The biggest secret wasn’t outside his family.
It was inside it.
The next morning, Victor gathered his closest men.
“Find everything about Michael Bennett.”
One guard hesitated.
“Sir, your father erased those records years ago.”
Victor looked up.
“Then recover what was erased.”
Nobody questioned him.
Not after seeing his face.
Because Victor Russo wasn’t angry.
Anger was loud.
This was something worse.
This was a man realizing his entire life had been built on a lie.
Chloe found him in the office.
“You’re investigating my father.”
Victor looked at her.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I need answers.”
She stepped closer.
“And if the answers hurt me?”
Victor stayed silent.
That silence told her everything.
“You think my father did something wrong.”
“I think someone wants us to believe that.”
“Us?”
The word surprised them both.
Victor looked away.
“You’re involved now.”
Chloe laughed bitterly.
“I was involved the moment I accidentally slept in your bed.”
For the first time, Victor almost smiled.
Almost.
Then Chloe noticed something.
A scar on his hand.
She had seen it before.
“Who hurt you?”
Victor looked down.
Nobody asked him questions like that.
“Someone I trusted.”
“Your brother?”
His expression changed.
Chloe immediately knew.
“I’m sorry.”
Victor walked to the window.
“My older brother Marco.”
The room became quiet.
“He was supposed to inherit everything.”
“What happened?”
“He was killed.”
Chloe lowered her voice.
“By who?”
Victor looked at her.
“That’s the question I’ve spent fifteen years trying to answer.”
That evening, Victor and Chloe discovered something hidden inside an old family archive.
A letter.
Written by Michael Bennett.
The letter was addressed to Victor’s father.
But one sentence stood out.
“If anything happens to me, protect Chloe and Tommy. They are innocent.”
Chloe covered her mouth.
“My father knew about me?”
Victor kept reading.
The final line made his blood run cold.
“The person you trust most is the one who betrayed you.”
Victor slowly lowered the paper.
Because there was only one person who had always been beside him.
One person who knew every secret.
Every weakness.
Every move.
His closest advisor.
Richard Hale.
Before Victor could confront him, the estate cameras went offline.
Again.
Then Chloe’s phone rang.
She answered.
A voice whispered.
“Chloe?”
She froze.
Because she knew that voice.
A voice she hadn’t heard in fifteen years.
“Mom?”
Victor immediately turned.
The voice continued.
“Don’t trust Victor Russo.”
Chloe’s heart stopped.
“Why?”
The answer came quietly.
“Because he is the reason your father died.”
The call ended.
Chloe slowly looked at Victor.
And for the first time…
May you like
She was afraid of him.
TO BE CONTINUED…
