Chapter 3
658 Words
Clara's POV
The private elevator was silent.
Painfully silent.
I stood beside Adrian Valez, refusing to look at him.
Five years.
Five years of anger.
Five years of blaming him.
And now I was standing inches away from the man who had haunted my life for so long.
The elevator doors opened.
The entire top floor belonged to him.
Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the city skyline. Everything screamed wealth, power, and control.
Very Adrian Valez.
"Sit."
His deep voice broke the silence.
I remained standing.
"I'm not here for coffee or small talk."
A corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
The arrogant jerk was actually amused.
"I didn't expect you to be."
My patience snapped.
"Did you destroy my family or not?"
The amusement instantly vanished from his face.
For several seconds, Adrian simply stared at me.
Then he walked toward his desk.
"No."
One word.
Simple.
Direct.
Confident.
I wanted to believe him.
Which made me hate myself.
"Then why did everyone think you did?"
Adrian opened a drawer and pulled out a thick folder.
Without saying a word, he placed it on the table between us.
I frowned.
"What is this?"
"Open it."
Slowly, I reached for the folder.
Inside were financial reports.
Legal documents.
Medical records.
Bank statements.
My eyes widened.
My father's name appeared on nearly every page.
"What is this?" I whispered again.
Adrian's expression hardened.
"Proof."
My heart pounded.
Proof of what?
I continued flipping through the pages.
Then I froze.
A payment record.
Monthly transfers.
Large ones.
Every month.
For five years.
Paid directly to the clinic treating my father.
I looked up sharply.
"What is this?"
"The reason your father is still receiving treatment."
The room spun.
"No."
I shook my head.
"No, that's impossible."
But the documents were right there.
The signatures.
The account numbers.
The dates.
Everything matched.
My hands trembled.
"You paid for this?"
Adrian looked away.
Almost uncomfortable.
"Someone had to."
I couldn't process what I was hearing.
The man I believed had destroyed my family had been secretly paying my father's medical bills.
For five years.
Why?
Why would he do that?
"You expect me to believe this?" I asked.
"I don't care what you believe."
His voice turned cold again.
"I only care about the truth."
The truth.
The word hit me harder than it should have.
Because suddenly I wasn't sure I knew what the truth was anymore.
Julian had lied.
The documents were real.
And Adrian...
Adrian wasn't acting like a guilty man.
He was acting like someone who had been wrongfully accused.
My chest tightened.
"What really happened five years ago?"
For the first time since I arrived, something dark flashed across his face.
Pain.
Real pain.
"I was trying to save your father's company."
I stared at him.
"What?"
"The takeover wasn't supposed to destroy Vance Shipping."
My breath caught.
"Then what was it supposed to do?"
Adrian walked toward the window.
Rain clouds gathered above the city.
His reflection stared back at him.
"It was supposed to protect it."
Silence filled the room.
"What are you talking about?"
He slowly turned around.
His eyes locked onto mine.
"Your father asked me for help."
My heart stopped.
"No."
"He knew the company was collapsing."
"No."
"He came to me himself."
"You're lying."
"I'm not."
The certainty in his voice terrified me.
Because deep down...
I knew he wasn't.
Then Adrian delivered the one sentence that shattered everything.
"The night before the company fell, your father begged me to protect you."
My world tilted.
Protect me?
Before I could ask another question, Adrian's phone suddenly rang.
His expression darkened as he answered.
"What happened?"
Silence.
Then his jaw clenched.
Hard.
"I'm on my way."
The call ended.
Every muscle in his body tightened.
"What happened?" I asked.
Adrian grabbed his suit jacket.
His eyes met mine.
"It's your father."
Fear exploded inside me.
"What about him?"
Adrian's face turned grim.
"He's gone."
- Writer
