Chapter 5 - THE MAN ADRIAN FEAREDThe name hung in the air.
Victor Hale.
No one knew who he was.
Except Adrian.
And the moment his name was spoken, something inside Adrian changed.
His assistant stepped closer.
"Sir?"
Adrian raised his hand.
"Not here."
Valeria watched him.
"Who is Victor Hale?"
Adrian did not answer immediately.
Rodrigo looked between them.
"I met him through a private investment group."
"When?"
"Six months ago."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Rodrigo laughed bitterly.
"You never asked about my company."
Valeria flinched.
The words were deserved.
But Rodrigo continued.
"Victor said he could help me secure a major funding round."
Adrian's expression hardened.
"How much?"
"Fifty million."
Several guests gasped.
Rodrigo continued.
"He said he wanted access to Nebula's technology."
Adrian stared at him.
"There it is."
Rodrigo frowned.
"What?"
"You sold him access."
"No."
"You invited him into this building."
"I didn't know who he was."
Adrian stepped closer.
"You knew exactly what he wanted."
Rodrigo's face changed.
Valeria turned toward her brother.
"Did you sign something?"
Rodrigo looked away.
Her heart sank.
"What did you sign?"
"Nothing."
"Rodrigo."
He closed his eyes.
"A preliminary agreement."
Adrian's voice became dangerously calm.
"What kind of agreement?"
Rodrigo remained silent.
His father grabbed his arm.
"Answer him."
Rodrigo finally whispered:
"An information-sharing agreement."
Adrian laughed once.
There was no humor in it.
"You gave him access to our internal strategy."
"I didn't know he was using a false identity."
"You didn't care."
Rodrigo flinched.
"I was trying to save my company."
Adrian stared at him.
"And you were willing to sell mine."
The accusation echoed through the room.
Valeria looked at Rodrigo.
"Is that true?"
He didn't answer.
That was enough.
Adrian turned toward the security team.
"Find Victor Hale."
The director nodded.
But before he could leave, every light in the ballroom suddenly went out.
The guests screamed.
A second later, the emergency lights flickered on.
The music stopped.
And from somewhere inside the building…
An alarm began to ring.
Adrian's assistant checked his phone.
His face went pale.
"Sir."
Adrian looked at him.
"The archive door has been opened."
Adrian turned toward Valeria.
"Stay here."
She shook her head.
"No."
"Valeria—"
"You hired me to solve problems."
He stared at her.
She took the contract from the table.
Then smiled faintly.
"I haven't signed yet."
Adrian almost smiled.
Then the two of them walked toward the dark corridor.
Behind them, Rodrigo stood frozen.
Because he had finally realized something.
May you like
His sister had never been invisible.
He had simply been too arrogant to see her.
Related Stories
