The Forgotten Heir's Reckoning

Chapter 4: Blood and Betrayal

Adrian Ashford had always been the black sheep of the family. While Frederick had pursued medicine and research, Adrian had pursued money and power through any means necessary. Their father had cut him off from the family business ten years ago after discovering that Adrian had been involved in illegal dealings. Since then, Adrian had disappeared into the criminal underworld, and no one had heard from him in almost a decade.

Until now.

"Find him," Frederick told Sandra. "I don't care what it takes. Find my brother."

What Sandra found shocked everyone. Adrian had not just disappeared into the criminal underworld. He had risen to become one of the most powerful crime bosses in the city. He had connections everywhere: in the police department, in the business world, even in the government. And he had been watching Frederick's medical research for the past three years.

"Why?" Frederick asked when Sandra presented him with the information. "What does he want with the cure?"

"Money," Sandra said simply. "A cure for a rare blood disease would be worth billions on the black market. There are people all over the world who would pay any price to get it. People with power, people with connections, people who would do anything to stay alive."

Frederick felt sick. His own brother had been trying to steal his life's work. His own brother had orchestrated the theft from Sterling Corporation, not because he wanted to hurt Ivy, but because he wanted to use the money to fund his criminal operations. And he had done it without caring about the collateral damage he caused.

"We need to go to the police," Ivy said. They were back in Frederick's office, planning their next move.

"We can't," Frederick said. "According to Sandra, Adrian has people in the police department on his payroll. If we go to them, word will get back to him, and he'll disappear again. Or worse, he'll come after us."

"So what do we do?" Ivy asked.

Frederick was about to answer when his phone rang. It was his mother. Her voice was shaking with fear.

"Frederick, someone broke into your father's house," she said urgently. "Your father has been hospitalized. He's in critical condition."

The world seemed to tilt on its axis.

Frederick and Ivy rushed to the hospital, where they found Frederick's father, David Ashford, lying in a hospital bed with bandages covering most of his body. He had been attacked in his own home, beaten severely by someone who had been looking for information about Frederick's research.

"Adrian," David whispered when Frederick leaned close to hear him. "It was Adrian. He wanted to know everything about the cure formula. When I refused to tell him, he beat me."

Frederick felt a rage so intense it nearly consumed him. His own brother had hurt their father. His own brother was willing to destroy their entire family for money and power.

"We're going to find him," Frederick promised. "And we're going to stop him."

Over the next week, Frederick and Ivy worked with Sandra to set a trap. They leaked information about the cure formula being stored in a secret location. They made it seem like the formula was incomplete, that it needed Adrian's help to be finished. They made it seem like there was a massive amount of money waiting for him if he helped them complete the research.

Adrian took the bait.

He contacted Frederick through an encrypted phone line, offering to help with the research in exchange for a seventy percent cut of the profits. Frederick agreed, and they set up a meeting in an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of the city.

When Adrian arrived, he was not alone. He brought ten armed men with him, ready for a double cross.

But Frederick was ready too. He had alerted the police, and they were waiting outside the warehouse. When Adrian tried to make his move, the police moved in with such speed and precision that he barely had time to process what was happening.

Adrian Ashford was arrested on charges of assault, attempted murder, organized crime, and theft of intellectual property. The police also found evidence linking him to dozens of other crimes, including human trafficking and drug smuggling.

As they led Adrian away in handcuffs, he caught Frederick's eye from across the warehouse.

"You've made a terrible mistake," Adrian said coldly. "You think this is over, but it's just beginning. I have friends in very high places. I have people who owe me favors. This isn't finished, Frederick. Not by a long shot."

Frederick watched his brother being taken away, and he felt a strange mixture of relief and dread. He had stopped Adrian, at least for now. But he knew that his brother's words had merit. There were loose ends that had not been tied up. There were people who were still out there, still connected to Adrian, still dangerous.

And most importantly, there was still the matter of Ivy's health.

The disease was progressing faster than the doctors had anticipated. They estimated that she had less than three months left before her condition became critical. And while Frederick's research was progressing well, it would not be ready in time.

Unless he did something drastic.

Unless he took his research in a direction that no one had ever taken it before.

Unless he risked everything to save the woman he loved.