CHAPTER 8 — The Secret Daniel Never Told Anyone
At Harrington Memorial Hospital...
Doctors rushed Daniel into emergency surgery.
Richard refused to leave the waiting room.
Hours passed.
No news.
Finally...
A young surgeon walked out.
"The bullet missed his heart by less than an inch."
Richard closed his eyes in relief.
"He's alive?"
"For now."
Meanwhile...
The company's cybersecurity team finally unlocked the encrypted flash drive.
Everyone gathered around the monitor.
Richard entered just as the first video began to play.
Daniel appeared on screen.
He looked directly into the camera.
"If you're watching this..."
"...someone tried to kill me."
The room fell silent.
"I created Project Phoenix because I knew the corruption inside Harrington Global was bigger than anyone imagined."
The video switched to charts.
Maps.
Bank accounts.
Hidden shell corporations across multiple countries.
Then came the biggest shock.
The stolen money had never left the company for personal luxury.
It had secretly financed the acquisition of dozens of businesses.
Every one of them...
Owned through anonymous holding companies.
The total value?
Over $12 billion.
Gasps filled the room.
Richard could hardly believe it.
But Daniel wasn't finished.
The final slide displayed a familiar face.
Richard's oldest business partner.
Beside him...
A second face slowly appeared.
The room froze.
"No..."
Richard whispered.
"It can't be..."
It wasn't another executive.
It wasn't a politician.
It wasn't even someone from the company.
It was...
Richard's own son.
The heir to Harrington Global.
Standing beside his father's closest friend...
Smiling as they signed the secret agreements together.
Richard staggered backward.
His own son...
Had betrayed him.
Just then, Richard's phone vibrated.
A private message from an unknown number contained only one sentence:
"Your son isn't the mastermind... he's just another pawn. If you want the truth, come alone at midnight."
Richard looked at the clock.
May you like
11:18 PM.
He had exactly 42 minutes to decide whether to walk into what was almost certainly a trap... or lose the chance to uncover the real person controlling the entire conspiracy.
