THE MAN IN THE PHOTOGRAPH
1291 Words
Chapter 7 — The Man in the Photograph
The photograph lay between Aria and Elias.
Neither of them spoke.
The man standing beside Elena smiled confidently at the camera.
Elias knew that smile.
He had seen it in boardrooms, family dinners, and company celebrations.
Adrian Cole.
His father's most trusted adviser.
“He can't be involved,” Elias finally said.
Aria looked at him.
“You said that very quickly.”
Elias frowned.
“Because Adrian has been with my family for years. He helped my father build the company.”
“And your mother trusted him?”
Elias looked back at the photograph.
“I thought she did.”
That answer made Aria uneasy.
They took the folder and returned to Elias's office.
He locked the door behind them.
“No one gets to know we found this,” he said.
Aria placed the documents on the desk.
“What exactly are we looking for?”
“Anything connecting Adrian to the missing money.”
They began going through the records.
For nearly an hour, they found nothing.
Then Aria noticed something.
“Wait.”
She pointed at one of the documents.
“This company name appears three times.”
Elias leaned over.
“Valencia Holdings?”
“No. Look at the account number.”
Elias compared the documents.
His expression changed.
“The same account.”
Aria nodded.
“But the company names are different.”
Elias grabbed his laptop.
“That means someone may have been moving money through multiple companies.”
He quickly searched the account number through old company records.
One result appeared.
Authorized representative: Adrian Cole.
Aria's eyes widened.
“You found him.”
Elias didn't respond.
He simply stared at the screen.
Then his phone rang.
Adrian Cole.
Elias and Aria looked at each other.
Elias answered.
“Adrian.”
“Elias,” the older man said calmly. “Your father told me you've been asking questions.”
Elias's jaw tightened.
“About my mother.”
There was a pause.
“Some memories are better left alone.”
Elias stood.
“I disagree.”
Adrian gave a quiet laugh.
“You always were stubborn.”
The call ended.
Aria looked at Elias.
“That sounded like a warning.”
“It was.”
Before they could continue, the office door opened.
Elias immediately closed the folder.
His father walked inside.
Behind him stood Adrian.
Aria's heart dropped.
Adrian looked at her.
For a brief second, his expression changed.
Recognition.
Not surprise.
Recognition.
Aria noticed.
He already knew who she was.
Elias stepped in front of her.
“What are you doing here?”
His father ignored the question.
“I heard you were looking through old company files.”
“We're looking for information about Mother.”
His father's expression hardened.
“Your mother is dead to this company.”
Elias stared at him.
“She deserves the truth.”
His father glanced toward Aria.
“And you believe she can help you find it?”
Aria remained silent.
Adrian finally spoke.
“Perhaps everyone should take a step back.”
Elias turned toward him.
“Why?”
Adrian smiled.
“Because you're becoming emotional.”
Elias's eyes narrowed.
“My mother disappeared. Financial records were altered. And now I find out that you were connected to the accounts she was investigating.”
For the first time, Adrian's smile disappeared.
“You should be careful with accusations.”
“I have documents.”
Adrian took a step forward.
“Documents can be misunderstood.”
Aria noticed something.
A small scar across Adrian's right hand.
She remembered the anonymous photograph from earlier.
The same hand had been visible in the background.
She quietly pulled out her phone and checked the photograph.
Then she looked at Adrian.
The scar was identical.
Her stomach tightened.
She whispered to Elias.
“I've seen his hand before.”
Elias looked at her.
“In the photograph.”
He understood immediately.
His expression changed.
Adrian noticed their exchange.
“What are you two whispering about?”
Elias closed the folder.
“Nothing.”
His father stepped toward the door.
“This conversation is over.”
“No,” Elias said.
His father stopped.
“You don't control me anymore.”
The room went silent.
For years, Elias had obeyed his father.
But not today.
His father looked at him with disappointment.
“You'll regret this.”
Then he walked out.
Adrian followed.
But before leaving, Adrian looked directly at Aria.
It was only for a second.
But it was enough.
He knew she had noticed something.
After the door closed, Aria exhaled.
“He knows.”
Elias nodded.
“We need to move carefully.”
Aria looked at him.
“There's something else.”
“What?”
“Victoria.”
Elias frowned.
“What about her?”
“She said your family expected you to marry her. But she also warned me that I was temporary.”
Elias leaned back.
“You think she knows something?”
“I don't know.”
He was quiet for a moment.
“Then we'll ask her.”
---
That evening, Elias arranged to meet Victoria.
Aria waited outside the restaurant while Elias spoke with her privately.
Victoria looked irritated.
“You really brought her into this?”
Elias's expression remained cold.
“Tell me what you know about my mother.”
Victoria's expression changed.
“My father knew Elena.”
“That isn't what I asked.”
She sighed.
“Your mother suspected someone inside the company was stealing money.”
“Adrian?”
Victoria looked away.
“I don't know.”
“You're lying.”
“I’m not!”
Her voice echoed through the restaurant.
Victoria lowered her voice.
“My father told me to stay out of it.”
“Why?”
“Because people who ask too many questions get pushed aside.”
Elias stared at her.
“What happened to my mother?”
Victoria shook her head.
“I don't know.”
Then she looked toward the window.
“But I know she wasn't planning to leave.”
Elias froze.
“What?”
Victoria reached into her bag and pulled out a small folded paper.
“She gave this to my father.”
Elias took it.
There was only one sentence written on it.
If Elias ever asks about me, tell him to look where the first promise was made.
Elias stared at the words.
“What does that mean?”
Victoria shook her head.
“I don't know.”
Then she looked at him seriously.
“But there's something you should know.”
“What?”
Victoria glanced toward Aria.
“Your mother didn't just know her.”
Elias followed her gaze.
“What are you talking about?”
Victoria lowered her voice.
“Elena knew Aria's family long before Aria was born.”
Elias's eyes widened.
---
Later that night, Elias and Aria sat in his car outside her aunt's house.
Neither spoke for several minutes.
Finally, Aria broke the silence.
“Where was the first promise made?”
Elias looked at the note.
“I don't know.”
Aria thought carefully.
“My aunt might.”
They were about to get out of the car when Elias's phone buzzed.
An unknown message appeared.
Stop looking into Elena Valencia.
Another message followed.
The next warning won't be a message.
Elias immediately looked toward the street.
Aria felt her heart race.
Then a third message appeared.
This one contained a photograph.
It was a picture of Aria and Elias sitting inside the car.
Taken only seconds earlier.
Elias's expression hardened.
Someone was watching them.
And whoever it was—
was much closer than they thought.
To be continued...
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