CHAPTER 12: THE ENEMY BESIDE ME
CHAPTER 12: THE ENEMY BESIDE ME
The name on the screen made my hands go cold.
I read it once.
Then again.
Then a third time.
Because my mind refused to accept what my eyes were seeing.
Sophia Cross.
Daniel's younger sister.
The woman who came to me.
The woman who apologized.
The woman who handed me her father's letter.
The woman who said she wanted to stop her brother.
The woman I believed was finally brave enough to stand against him.
I stared at the article.
"Sophia Cross Named As Key Investor Behind Hidden Cross Industries Operations."
My first thought was disbelief.
My second was anger.
My third...
Was confusion.
Because something didn't make sense.
Sophia didn't look like someone controlling an empire.
She looked like someone trying to escape one.
Emily watched my face.
"What happened?"
I turned the laptop toward her.
She read the headline.
Her expression changed instantly.
"No."
That was the same reaction she had when she saw Daniel's message.
Immediate.
Certain.
Impossible.
"You believe she did it?"
Emily looked at me.
"I don't know."
That answer scared me more than anything.
Because Emily always knew.
She understood Daniel better than anyone.
But now...
Even she was uncertain.
I called Sophia.
No answer.
Again.
No answer.
Then I sent a message.
"We need to talk. Now."
Five minutes later, she replied.
"I know."
Only two words.
Nothing else.
I looked at Emily.
"She knows."
"Or she's waiting."
The thought made me uncomfortable.
Because I had spent so much time learning that Daniel was dangerous.
I forgot something important.
Danger didn't always look like Daniel.
Sometimes it looked like a friend.
We met at an old park outside the city.
Somewhere private.
Somewhere without cameras.
Sophia arrived alone.
She looked exhausted.
Not guilty.
Not confident.
Exhausted.
She stopped in front of me.
"I knew this would happen."
I crossed my arms.
"You knew?"
She nodded.
"The moment you found the files, I knew."
"Then explain."
She looked down.
"I didn't betray you."
I almost laughed.
"The article says otherwise."
"The article says what someone wants people to believe."
The sentence caught my attention.
Because it sounded familiar.
Too familiar.
Daniel's entire life was built on controlling stories.
"Then tell me the truth."
Sophia took a deep breath.
"I am an investor."
I stared at her.
"So it's true."
"Yes."
"But not the way they claim."
She looked around.
"My father left shares of Cross Industries in my name."
I frowned.
"What?"
"After he died."
"Why?"
"Because he knew Daniel would follow the same path."
I didn't understand.
"He trusted you?"
Sophia shook her head.
"No."
A pause.
"He was afraid of Daniel."
That sentence shocked me.
"Your own father was afraid of his son?"
Sophia looked at me.
"You don't understand what Daniel became."
I almost responded.
But then I remembered.
The threats.
The control.
The obsession.
Maybe I did understand.
"What did your father leave you?"
"Control."
"Over what?"
"The information."
The answer made me stop.
"What information?"
Sophia looked at Emily.
Then back at me.
"The evidence against Daniel."
The story changed completely.
Sophia wasn't controlling Daniel's downfall.
She was protecting the evidence.
But someone had leaked her name.
Someone wanted everyone to believe she was responsible.
"Who released the article?"
Sophia shook her head.
"I don't know."
Emily stepped forward.
"Yes, you do."
Sophia looked at her.
The two women stared at each other.
"You've always known."
Sophia's face changed.
"What are you talking about?"
Emily's voice became colder.
"Daniel didn't create this strategy alone."
Silence.
"You helped him."
Sophia looked hurt.
"Emily..."
"No."
Emily interrupted.
"I spent four years watching Daniel manipulate people."
She pointed at Sophia.
"And you were always there."
Sophia looked away.
"Because I was trying to stop him."
Emily shook her head.
"Or because you were waiting for the right moment."
The accusation hung in the air.
I looked between them.
"Someone explain."
Sophia closed her eyes.
Then she said:
"I knew Daniel was planning to marry you before you met him."
My heart dropped.
"What?"
Emily looked at her.
"You knew?"
Sophia nodded.
"I tried to warn him."
"Warn who?"
"Victoria."
I stared.
"But you didn't."
"No."
Her voice broke.
"Because Daniel found out I was investigating him."
"What did he do?"
Sophia laughed sadly.
"He threatened the only thing I cared about."
"What?"
"My mother's medical care."
I went silent.
Daniel had done it again.
Using someone's weakness.
Using love as a weapon.
"He told me if I interfered, he would destroy everything."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because I thought I could handle him."
She looked at me.
"I was wrong."
Then Sophia revealed the truth about the article.
"The person who released that information..."
She paused.
"Wasn't me."
"Who?"
She looked at me.
"Someone who has access to Daniel's private files."
My stomach tightened.
"Who has that?"
Sophia hesitated.
Then:
"Only three people."
"Daniel."
"Me."
"And..."
She stopped.
I waited.
"And someone Daniel trusts completely."
The wind moved through the trees.
I felt a strange fear.
Because I already knew what was coming.
"Who?"
Sophia whispered:
"His attorney."
Everything suddenly made sense.
The lawsuits.
The pressure.
The constant warnings.
Daniel's lawyer wasn't just protecting him.
He was helping him.
Maybe for years.
But why?
Before I could ask...
My phone rang.
Natalie.
I answered immediately.
"Victoria, where are you?"
"Why?"
"Because you need to see this before it disappears."
My heart tightened.
"What?"
"I found another file."
"About Daniel?"
"No."
A pause.
"About you."
We rushed back to Natalie's office.
She opened her laptop.
A file was displayed.
The title:
VICTORIA HALE - ORIGINAL TARGET PROFILE
I stared.
"Target?"
Natalie nodded.
"This was created before Daniel met you."
My hands shook.
"Who created it?"
She clicked the information.
The author appeared.
And my blood froze.
Because it wasn't Daniel.
It wasn't Sophia.
It wasn't anyone from Cross Industries.
It was someone from my own past.
Someone I thought was gone forever.
Someone who knew my family.
Someone who had been watching me long before Daniel.
I looked at the name.
And everything inside me stopped.
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Because the person who had started this entire game...
Was my own father.
