Chapter 16 - The Unholy Secret
I looked down at Flynn with absolute disgust. "You sold your soul twice, Flynn. And both times, you ended up bleeding at my feet."
"I have something you need!" Flynn gasped, clutching his wounded shoulder as blood seeped through his fingers. "Evelyn... she isn't just a rival, Claire! She’s your half-sister!"
The room went dead quiet. Even Jonathan, who stood near the fireplace, froze in absolute shock.
"What did you say?" I asked, my voice dropping an octave.
"Your grandfather... William Hart... had a secret family before he met your grandmother," Flynn stammered desperately, eager to trade information for his life. "Evelyn was his firstborn daughter! But when her mother tried to expose him forty years ago, William paid to have them erased from the Hart family lineage. Evelyn grew up in poverty, watching you live like royalty while she suffered! She spent her entire life planning this revenge!"
I sat motionless, processing the revelation. The pieces of the puzzle finally clicked together. The obsession. The deep, personal hatred. The knowledge of our internal family protocols.
"Where is she now, Flynn?" I asked coldly.
"She’s at the old Hart Manor in the mountains," Flynn whispered, his strength fading fast. "She has a team of mercenaries. She... she kidnapped your grandfather's old executive assistant this afternoon. She's looking for the original physical master ledger. The one that proves her legal rights to the Hart bloodline!"
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"She wants to claim the entire trust as the eldest living heir," Jonathan realized, stepping forward. "If she proves she is William Hart's firstborn, she can legally reverse Protocol Zero through the Supreme Court!"
"Not if I bury her first," I said softly.
