val

unexpected

EPISODE 3

The door closed behind Valentina.

She stood in the hallway for a moment.

Just stood there.

Her fingers tightened around the file she was holding until the edges dug into her palm.

She could still hear his voice in her head.

We are not that close.

Her eyes burned.

She blinked quickly.

No.

She wasn't going to cry.

Not here.

Not because of him.

She lifted her chin and walked toward the elevator.

Her heels clicked against the polished floor.

One step.

Two.

Three.

Every sound seemed to announce her humiliation.

When the elevator doors finally opened, she stepped inside and pressed the button.

The doors began to close.

Then a voice stopped them.

miss Ashford

She froze.

Ryan stood outside.

His hands were tucked casually into his pockets, but his eyes were studying her carefully.

She forced a smile.

"Yes?"

"You forgot this."

He held out her phone.

She hadn't even realized she'd left it on Vince's desk.

"Thank you."

She reached for it.

Ryan didn't let go immediately.

His expression softened.

"You okay?"

Valentina laughed quietly.

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you look like you're about to either cry or murder someone."

Her lips twitched.

"Maybe both."

Ryan smiled.

For the first time that morning, she almost felt normal.

Almost.

He finally released the phone.

"Take care of yourself, Val."

The elevator doors closed.

And the smile disappeared from her face.

VANTEX TOWER — UNDERGROUND PARKING

Valentina reached her car and threw the file onto the passenger seat.

She slammed the door.

Then she sat there.

Silent.

Her breathing was uneven.

A tear finally escaped.

She wiped it away angrily.

"Pathetic."

She hated herself for caring so much.

She hated that one sentence from Vince could ruin her entire day.

She hated that she still wanted him.

But most of all—

She hated that he didn't know the truth.

She pulled out her phone.

Opened the message from Pig.

Found a clue.

Her thumb hovered over the attachment.

Then she opened it again.

It was a photograph.

A security log.

Someone had accessed confidential Paragize files three nights ago.

The account belonged to someone inside Vantex.

Valentina's eyes narrowed.

She zoomed in.

USER ID: R-017

She stared at it.

"Who the hell is R-017?"

Another message appeared.

Pig: That's not the interesting part.

A second attachment arrived.

She opened it.

Her breath caught.

It was a list of employees who had accessed the Paragize server.

There were six names.

Five were ordinary.

The sixth made her stomach drop.

Liana Ashford.

Valentina stared at the screen.

Her sister.

"No..."

She zoomed in again.

Maybe it was a mistake.

Maybe someone had used her credentials.

Maybe—

Her phone rang.

Pig.

She answered immediately.

"What did you find?"

His voice came through low and hurried.

"Don't panic."

"That's what people say before telling someone something terrible."

"Valentina."

"Pig."

Silence.

Then he sighed.

"Liana's credentials were used to access the files."

Valentina closed her eyes.

"Did she do it?"

"I don't know."

"Can you find out?"

"I can try."

"No."

Her voice hardened.

"Don't try."

"What?"

"I'll find out myself."

She ended the call.

For several seconds, she stared at her sister's name.

Then something clicked.

The gala.

Liana.

Vince.

The Paragize files.

Everything suddenly felt connected.

But if Liana really was involved...

Why?

ASHFORD ESTATE — 12:47 P.M.

Liana was in the garden.

She sat beneath the large white umbrella, scrolling through her tablet while two assistants discussed Paragize logistics.

She looked completely relaxed.

Too relaxed.

Valentina watched her from the upstairs balcony.

Her sister looked innocent.

Beautiful.

Perfect.

The daughter everyone trusted.

The daughter who always seemed to do everything right.

Valentina's fingers curled around the balcony railing.

She had spent years being compared to Liana.

Liana was elegant.

Liana was responsible.

Liana was mature.

Liana was the daughter who never embarrassed the family.

And now her name had appeared in a security breach.

Valentina turned away.

She needed proof.

Not suspicion.

Proof.

She walked downstairs.

"Liana."

Her sister looked up.

"Val!"

A smile immediately appeared on her face.

"You disappeared after breakfast."

"I had somewhere to be."

Liana closed her tablet.

"Everything okay?"

Valentina studied her.

"Yeah."

She smiled.

"Actually, I wanted to ask you something."

"Sure."

"About Paragize."

Liana's expression didn't change.

"What about it?"

"Someone leaked some confidential information."

"Oh?"

"Apparently someone accessed the files using your credentials."

Silence.

For half a second—

Just half a second—

Something flickered in Liana's eyes.

Then it disappeared.

"What?"

Valentina smiled.

"I know. Strange, right?"

"Very."

"Do you know how someone could have gotten your login?"

Liana laughed softly.

"Val, you know how many people work around us. Someone probably hacked the system."

"Probably."

Valentina nodded.

Then she leaned closer.

"But if I were you..."

She lowered her voice.

"I'd change my password."

Liana smiled.

"I will."

Valentina straightened.

"Good."

She turned away.

Neither woman noticed the other watching her.

VANTEX TOWER — 2:15 P.M.

Vince stood before the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Austin stretched beneath him.

His phone buzzed.

He glanced at it.

A message from security.

URGENT: Unauthorized access detected on Paragize server.

His expression changed.

He opened the attached report.

His eyes moved across the screen.

Then stopped.

Liana Ashford's credentials.

His jaw tightened.

"No."

He immediately called Ryan.

"Get into my office."

Two minutes later, Ryan entered.

"What happened?"

Vince handed him the phone.

"Tell me this is wrong."

Ryan read the report.

His expression became serious.

"It's possible her credentials were compromised."

"Find out."

"Already doing it."

Vince walked back toward his desk.

Then his eyes landed on the trash can.

The black piece of fabric was still there.

He looked away.

Why was he thinking about her?

Valentina.

Her eyes.

Her trembling voice.

The way she'd said I'm sorry.

He clenched his jaw.

He didn't care.

He couldn't.

She was an Ashford.

That was all that mattered.

ASHFORD ESTATE — 6:30 P.M.

Valentina sat alone in her bedroom.

Her laptop was open.

Three screens surrounded her.

She had spent hours digging.

And she'd found something.

A bank transfer.

A large one.

Made forty-eight hours before the gala.

The recipient was a shell company.

And the shell company belonged to—

Valentina's eyes widened.

VANTEX HOLDINGS.

"What?"

She leaned closer.

That made no sense.

Why would someone inside Vantex pay a shell company connected to the leak?

She clicked through the documents.

Another transfer.

Then another.

All routed through different accounts.

But there was one name attached to the original account.

RICHARD ASHFORD.

Her father.

Valentina stopped breathing.

"No."

She stared at the screen.

Her father?

Impossible.

She pushed her chair back.

Maybe the records were fake.

Maybe someone was framing him.

Maybe—

Her bedroom door opened.

She quickly closed the laptop.

"Valentina?"

She looked up.

Her father stood at the doorway.

Richard smiled faintly.

"You've been hiding in here all day."

"I'm working."

"On what?"

She smiled.

"Paragize."

His eyes lingered on her for a moment.

Then he nodded.

"Good."

He stepped inside.

"You know how important this merger is to this family."

Valentina swallowed.

"I know."

"You must make sure nothing goes wrong."

"I will."

Richard smiled.

"Good girl."

He turned to leave.

Valentina watched him.

Her heart was pounding.

"Papa?"

He stopped.

"Yes?"

She forced a smile.

"Nothing."

The door closed.

Valentina immediately opened the laptop again.

Her father's name stared back at her.

For the first time in her life, she wondered if she really knew her own family.

VANTEX TOWER — 11:48 P.M.

Vince sat alone in his office.

The city lights reflected against the glass.

Ryan had already left.

The building was almost empty.

Vince poured himself a drink.

He stared at it.

Then stopped.

A strange memory flashed through his mind.

Valentina's face.

Her lips against his.

His hands in her hair.

His own inability to stop.

He squeezed his eyes shut.

"Dammit."

His phone buzzed.

A message.

From an unknown number.

You think the Ashfords are your enemy?

Vince frowned.

Another message arrived.

You're looking in the wrong direction.

His expression hardened.

Then came the final message.

Ask yourself who really killed your mother.

The glass slipped slightly in his hand.

His entire body went still.

For fourteen years, Vince had believed he knew the truth.

For fourteen years, he'd carried the Ashford name like a wound.

His mother's death had been the foundation of everything he had become.

The reason for his hatred.

The reason for his revenge.

The reason he had never allowed himself to forgive.

His phone buzzed again.

One final message.

An image.

Old.

Blurry.

But clear enough.

A photograph from fourteen years ago.

His mother.

Standing beside someone he knew.

Someone who was supposed to have been nowhere near the scene that night.

Vince stared at the photograph.

His breathing stopped.

Because the person standing beside his mother—

Was Richard Ashford.

His eyes darkened.

"No..."

For the first time in fourteen years—

Vince wondered if he had been wrong.

And across the city, Valentina sat in her bedroom staring at the exact same name.

Neither of them knew it yet.

But the truth they had both been searching for...

Was finally beginning to surface.

And when it did—

It would destroy everything.