The Billionaire

the brother

Episode 17: The Brother

The rain continued to fall as Daniel stared at Victor.

For several seconds, he could not speak.

His brother was alive.

The words repeated inside his mind.

Your brother is alive.

Daniel had spent his entire life believing he was an only child. His mother had never mentioned another child. His father had never spoken about one.

Yet Victor had just claimed that his brother was alive—and worse, that he was the billionaire behind the company trying to destroy Daniel's empire.

"You're lying," Daniel finally said.

Victor shook his head.

"I wish I were."

Daniel stepped closer.

"Tell me everything."

Victor looked toward the mansion.

"We can't stay here."

"Then where are we going?"

"Somewhere safe."

Daniel laughed bitterly.

"Safe? I've been hearing that word my entire life. My father is dead. Victor disappeared. People are breaking into my house. And now I'm being told I have a brother."

Victor remained silent.

Daniel grabbed him by the jacket.

"Who is he?"

Victor looked into Daniel's eyes.

"His name is Adrian."

Daniel released him.

"Adrian?"

"Adrian Black."

Daniel recognized the name immediately.

Everyone in the business world knew Adrian Black.

He was one of the youngest billionaires in the country. His company, Blackstone Global, had grown from a small investment firm into a multinational empire.

For months, Adrian's company had been aggressively purchasing businesses connected to Daniel's family.

Daniel had always assumed it was simply competition.

Now everything looked different.

"Adrian Black is my brother?"

Victor nodded.

Daniel walked away slowly.

"How?"

Victor took a deep breath.

"Your father had another family before you."

Daniel turned around.

"My father?"

"Yes."

Victor looked uncomfortable.

"Before he married your mother, your father was involved with a woman named Sophia."

Daniel's face hardened.

"Who was Sophia?"

"Adrian's mother."

Daniel stared at the ground.

"Why did my father leave them?"

"He didn't."

Victor paused.

"Your father didn't know Adrian existed."

Daniel frowned.

"That makes no sense."

"It does when you know what happened."

Victor explained that Sophia had discovered she was pregnant shortly after Daniel's father left the country for business.

She tried to contact him.

But someone intercepted her letters.

Someone made sure the two never met again.

"Who?" Daniel asked.

Victor looked away.

"We don't know."

Daniel's anger grew.

"Then how did Adrian find out?"

"Your father's old documents."

Victor reached into his coat and pulled out a folded piece of paper.

"Adrian discovered the truth several years ago."

Daniel took it.

The document was old.

It contained his father's name.

At the bottom was a handwritten sentence:

My first son must never learn the truth.

Daniel's hands trembled.

"Why would my father write this?"

"He didn't."

Victor pointed at the handwriting.

"Someone forged it."

Daniel looked closely.

He knew his father's handwriting.

This wasn't his.

"So someone wanted Adrian to believe my father abandoned him?"

"Exactly."

"Why?"

Victor hesitated.

"Because whoever controls Adrian can control his fortune."

Daniel frowned.

"What does that mean?"

"Adrian believes your father stole his inheritance."

Victor explained that Adrian had spent years building his empire because he believed his father had deliberately abandoned him.

But Adrian did not know the entire truth.

Someone had manipulated him.

Daniel suddenly remembered something.

"Who has been advising Adrian?"

Victor's expression changed.

"Marcus."

Daniel's eyes widened.

Marcus had been his father's closest financial adviser.

He had also remained on the board of Daniel's company after his father's death.

Daniel whispered:

"Marcus."

Victor nodded.

"He has been working with Adrian for years."

Daniel felt betrayed.

Marcus had been the man who had helped Daniel understand the family business.

He had attended his father's funeral.

He had advised Daniel during difficult times.

And now he might have been responsible for the destruction of everything.

"Why would Marcus do this?"

"Money."

Victor looked toward the mansion.

"But there's more."

Daniel waited.

"Your father discovered that Marcus had been stealing from the company."

Daniel's eyes narrowed.

"How much?"

"Billions."

Silence.

Victor continued.

"Your father planned to expose him."

"So Marcus killed him?"

"We believe so."

Daniel stared into the darkness.

Everything suddenly connected.

The mysterious messages.

The secret room.

Victor's disappearance.

The attacks on his company.

Marcus.

Adrian.

His father's death.

But one question remained.

"Why is Adrian attacking me?"

"Because Marcus convinced him that your father chose you over him."

Daniel clenched his fists.

"So Adrian thinks I'm the reason he lost everything."

"Yes."

Daniel shook his head.

"He doesn't even know me."

"He doesn't have to. Marcus made sure of that."

A vehicle suddenly appeared at the end of the road.

Victor immediately grabbed Daniel.

"Down!"

They crouched behind the building.

The vehicle stopped.

Two men stepped out.

One of them held a gun.

Daniel's heart raced.

Victor whispered:

"They followed us."

The men began searching the area.

Daniel looked at Victor.

"What do we do?"

Victor pointed toward a second building.

"Run when I tell you."

One of the men moved closer.

Victor suddenly threw a metal object across the yard.

It crashed against a wall.

The men turned.

"Now!"

Victor and Daniel ran.

Gunshots exploded behind them.

Daniel ducked as bullets struck the wall.

They reached the second building and rushed inside.

Victor locked the door.

Daniel leaned against the wall, breathing heavily.

"That was close."

Victor looked through a broken window.

"They won't stop."

Daniel looked at the black recording device.

"We need to find Adrian."

Victor nodded.

"But we can't just walk into his company."

Daniel smiled slightly.

"I don't intend to."

The next morning, Daniel entered a luxury hotel wearing a dark suit.

Victor had arranged a meeting.

The room was on the top floor.

Daniel stood beside the window, watching the city below.

At exactly nine o'clock, the door opened.

A tall man entered.

He was dressed in a black suit.

His face was calm.

His eyes were cold.

Daniel recognized him immediately.

Adrian Black.

His brother.

Adrian closed the door.

"So," he said.

"You're Daniel."

Daniel stared at him.

"And you're Adrian."

Adrian smiled.

"Apparently, we're brothers."

Daniel studied his face.

There were similarities.

The same sharp eyes.

The same shape of the jaw.

Even the same small scar near the eyebrow.

For the first time, Daniel realized how much of his father lived in another man.

Adrian walked toward the table.

"Do you know how long I've waited to meet you?"

"No."

"Twenty years."

Daniel remained silent.

Adrian poured himself a drink.

"I spent most of my life believing your father hated me."

"He didn't."

Adrian laughed.

"That's what everyone says."

"He didn't know about you."

Adrian's smile disappeared.

"That's a convenient story."

Daniel placed the old document on the table.

"Look at this."

Adrian picked it up.

His eyes moved across the page.

"Where did you get this?"

"It was in my father's secret room."

Adrian stared at him.

"Your father wrote this."

"No."

Daniel shook his head.

"It's a forgery."

Adrian looked up.

"How do you know?"

"Because I knew my father's handwriting."

Adrian's expression changed.

For the first time, doubt appeared in his eyes.

Daniel continued.

"Someone wanted you to hate him."

Adrian slowly sat down.

"Who?"

"Marcus."

Adrian froze.

"Don't say his name."

"Why?"

"Because he saved me."

Daniel frowned.

"Saved you from what?"

Adrian looked away.

"When I was eighteen, I discovered documents suggesting my father had abandoned me. Marcus found me. He helped me build my company."

Daniel stepped closer.

"He didn't help you. He used you."

Adrian stared at him.

"You expect me to believe that?"

Daniel placed the recording device on the table.

"Listen."

He pressed play.

Their father's voice filled the room.

Adrian's face changed.

For the first time in decades, he heard the voice of the father he had never known.

"Adrian..."

The recording continued.

"If you ever hear this, I want you to know that I never abandoned you."

Adrian's eyes filled with tears.

Daniel remained silent.

Their father's voice continued.

"Someone prevented me from finding you. I spent years trying to discover what happened."

Adrian covered his mouth.

The recording suddenly stopped.

"What happened?" Adrian asked.

Daniel frowned.

"The recording is damaged."

Adrian looked at him.

"Where is the rest?"

"I don't know."

Suddenly, the hotel lights went out.

Darkness filled the room.

Adrian stood.

"What happened?"

Daniel heard a sound.

A gun being loaded.

Then a voice came from the darkness.

"You should never have brought the brothers together."

A gunshot exploded.

Adrian fell to the floor.

"Adrian!"

Daniel rushed toward him.

But before he could reach him, another gunshot rang out.

The window shattered.

Daniel dropped behind the table.

When he looked up, Adrian was gone.

Only blood remained on the carpet.

And on the wall, written in red, were four words:

ONE BROTHER MUST DIE.