CHAPTER 7 — The Letter That Changed Everything
The room fell silent as Walter carefully unfolded the final letter.
The paper was fragile.
The handwriting belonged to Adrian's mother.
She had written it just hours before she disappeared.
Walter read aloud.
"If Victor dies before the truth is revealed, don't stop searching. He wasn't the one giving orders."
Adrian felt his stomach tighten.
"What does that mean?"
Walter continued reading.
"Victor was afraid of someone. Every time the phone rang, he stood up like a frightened servant. He always called that person... The Chairman."
No one spoke.
Victor Sterling...
The ruthless billionaire everyone believed had controlled everything...
had merely been a puppet.
Walter turned the page.
"There are names."
Adrian looked down.
Almost every name belonged to powerful businessmen who had died years earlier.
Except one.
One name was still alive.
Edward Langston.
The honorary chairman of Sterling Global.
Ninety years old.
Retired.
Respected.
Celebrated as a legendary philanthropist.
The same man who was scheduled to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award the next evening.
Adrian slowly looked up.
"So the man everyone admires..."
"...is the one who destroyed our family."
Walter nodded.
"He built an empire by stealing other people's lives."
At that exact moment...
Edward Langston appeared on every television screen in the lobby, smiling as reporters praised his generosity.
Walter whispered,
May you like
"Monsters don't always wear angry faces."
"They often wear expensive suits."
