Chapter 11: The Price of Revenge
Chapter 11: The Price of Revenge
The next morning, the entire business world watched as Valmont Holdings faced a crisis.
A leaked report accused the company of illegal financial activities.
Stock prices dropped.
Investors panicked.
News channels repeated the same question.
Was the Valmont empire built on corruption?
Inside the headquarters, executives were terrified.
Adrian looked at the reports.
"This is impossible."
Mariana stood beside him.
"No."
She studied the documents.
"This was planned."
"By Marcus?"
She shook her head.
"Marcus doesn't have enough power."
Adrian looked at her.
"Then who?"
Before she answered, every screen in the conference room changed.
A video appeared.
A man wearing a dark suit looked into the camera.
His face was hidden.
But his voice was calm.
"Mariana Vale."
Everyone froze.
"I know you are watching."
Mariana stepped closer.
The man's voice continued.
"You believe you inherited Victor Valmont's secrets."
A pause.
"But you inherited his mistakes."
The screen went black.
The room remained silent.
Adrian looked at Mariana.
"Who was that?"
She didn't answer immediately.
Because something about the voice bothered her.
Something familiar.
Then suddenly...
she remembered.
A conversation years ago.
A voice from the past.
A promise.
A warning.
"No..."
Adrian looked at her.
"What?"
Mariana whispered:
"I know him."
That evening, Mariana went alone to an abandoned building downtown.
The location from the message.
She entered carefully.
The lights turned on one by one.
A man stood at the end of the room.
Older.
Elegant.
Powerful.
And impossible.
Mariana stopped breathing.
"You."
The man smiled.
"Hello, Mariana."
She stared.
"You're dead."
He laughed softly.
"That's what everyone believed."
The man stepped forward.
"I had to disappear."
Mariana's eyes hardened.
"Why?"
"Because Victor was going to expose me."
Her voice became colder.
"You killed him."
The man didn't deny it.
"I protected myself."
Mariana clenched her fists.
"Who are you?"
The man smiled.
"You already know."
A long silence.
Then he said:
"My name is Alexander Vale."
Mariana froze.
Because that name belonged to her family.
Her blood.
May you like
Her past.
The brother everyone told her had died twenty years ago.
