Chapter 8 - THE REAL REAPER (THE FINAL TWIST)
Three months later.
The news of the "Vance Manor Betrayal" had finally faded from the headlines. Victor Vance and Julian Vance were serving life sentences in a maximum-security federal facility, their vast criminal empire completely dismantled and donated to global orphanages.
Vance Manor had been renamed the Sterling Estate. The grand ballroom was restored, but the crystal chandeliers were replaced with simple, elegant warm lighting.
It was a quiet afternoon. The sun was setting over the rolling green hills of the estate.
Thomas Sterling stood in the center of his favorite rose garden, wearing his old, comfortable leather apron, trimming the dead leaves off a bush of dark crimson roses.
Evelyn walked up behind him, carrying two cups of tea. She handed one to her grandfather and leaned against the stone wall, watching the peaceful horizon.
"It's quiet now," Evelyn said softly. "Interpol confirmed the last Vanguard cell in Europe was shut down yesterday. It's finally over."
Thomas didn't answer immediately. He used his shears to clip a long, sharp thorn from a stem.
"Is it?" Thomas asked quietly.
Evelyn frowned, turning to look at him. "What do you mean? We got Victor. We got Julian. The money is gone. The core is safe."
Thomas reached into his apron pocket and pulled out a small, old black-and-white photograph. He handed it to Evelyn.
She looked at the photo. It was taken forty years ago. It showed three young men standing in front of a small garage, arms around each other's shoulders, smiling at the camera.
On the left was Thomas Sterling. On the right was Victor Vance.
"Who is the man in the middle?" Evelyn asked, her brow furrowing. "His face is scratched out."
Thomas took a slow sip of his tea, his eyes gazing far out past the estate gates, where a single black limousine had just pulled up to the curb.
"That was the real founder of Sterling Enterprises," Thomas said, his voice dropping to a low tone that made Evelyn’s blood run cold. "The man who actually built the AI core. The man Victor and I murdered forty years ago to steal this empire."
Evelyn stepped back, staring at her grandfather in absolute horror. "What... what are you saying?"
"Julian thought he was the villain of this story, Evelyn," Thomas said calmly, turning to face her with a smile that was no longer gentle. "Victor thought he was the mastermind. But they were just pawns. I used Julian’s greed to draw Victor out of hiding. I used Victor’s attack to erase the Vanguard. And now..."
The door of the black limousine outside swung open. A man stepped out, wearing a sharp cream-colored suit—the exact same design Julian had worn on his wedding day.
The man raised his head, looking up at the manor. His face was identical to Thomas’s—a twin brother no one in the world knew existed.
May you like
Thomas clipped another crimson rose from the bush and handed it to his terrified granddaughter.
"Now, the real game begins."
