The billionaire's reckless heart

Chapter 5: Victoria's plan

Chapter 5

Victoria’s Secret

I couldn't sleep.

Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Alexander standing in front of me.

She was my fiancée.

The words kept replaying in my mind.

I had no business caring.

Alexander wasn't mine.

He wasn't even my friend.

Yet somehow, the thought of another woman having once owned his heart bothered me more than I wanted to admit.

I turned over in bed and stared at the ceiling.

Then my phone buzzed.

Unknown number.

I hesitated before opening the message.

You don't know what kind of man Alexander Blackwood really is.

My stomach tightened.

Another message arrived.

Ask him about the night his father died.

I sat up.

Before I could reply, a final message appeared.

And ask him why I was the last person to see his father alive.

My heart began pounding.

Whoever had sent the messages knew things I didn't.

---

Across the city, Victoria sat alone in a dark apartment.

On the table in front of her were photographs, documents, and an old leather folder.

She opened it slowly.

Inside was a photograph of Alexander's father.

Beside it was a document bearing the Blackwood family name.

Victoria smiled.

"Almost everything is mine."

She traced her finger across the photograph.

Alexander had always believed she had betrayed him.

He had never known the truth.

And she intended to keep it that way.

Victoria's secret wasn't simply that she had once been Alexander's fiancée.

She had been there the night his father died.

And she knew something about that night that could destroy Alexander's entire empire.

But there was another secret.

One Alexander didn't know.

Victoria was carrying a piece of his family's past that could legally give her control over part of the Blackwood fortune.

She had spent years preparing for the right moment to return.

Now that moment had arrived.

And Emma had made things even more interesting.

Victoria picked up the photograph of Emma.

"Poor girl."

She smiled coldly.

"You have no idea whose game you've walked into."

Her phone rang.

She answered.

"Is everything ready?"

A man's voice responded.

"Almost."

"And the documents?"

"Secured."

"Good."

Victoria stood and looked out the window.

"Once Alexander signs the agreement, the company will be mine."

"And Emma?"

Victoria's smile disappeared.

"She is the problem."

"Should we get rid of her?"

Victoria was silent for several seconds.

"No."

Her voice became softer.

"Alexander has already started caring about her."

She looked down at Emma's photograph.

"And that is exactly how we're going to destroy him."

---

The next evening, Alexander arrived to pick me up.

I opened the door and froze.

He was wearing a black tuxedo.

His dark hair was perfectly styled, and his expression was unreadable.

"You look beautiful," he said.

I blinked.

"Thank you."

His eyes remained on me.

"You've been avoiding me."

"I've been thinking."

"About?"

I looked directly at him.

"Victoria."

His jaw tightened.

"I told you to forget her."

"I received a message."

His expression changed.

"What message?"

I handed him my phone.

He read it.

For several seconds, he didn't speak.

Then his eyes met mine.

"Where did you get this?"

"I don't know."

His expression became cold.

"Emma, from now on, you don't answer unknown numbers."

"Alexander—"

"I'm serious."

"Then tell me the truth."

He stared at me.

"About your father."

Silence.

I watched something break behind his eyes.

"Who told you about him?"

"Victoria."

Alexander's face hardened.

"Get in the car."

"You're not going to explain?"

"Not here."

He took my hand.

His grip was firm, but there was something different about him now.

Fear.

Real fear.

As we walked toward the car, he leaned closer.

"Whatever Victoria tells you, don't believe everything you hear."

I looked at him.

"Does that mean some of it is true?"

He didn't answer.

And that silence told me more than words could.

---

Victoria watched from across the street.

She saw Alexander hold Emma's hand.

Her expression darkened.

She picked up her phone.

"He's taking her to the Blackwood gala."

The man on the other end answered.

"Then tonight?"

Victoria smiled.

"Tonight, we make Alexander choose."

She looked at Emma one last time.

"And when he chooses her..."

Her smile became cruel.

"...he'll lose everything."

She ended the call.

The game had finally begun.