Chapter 8: The Investigation Begins
Daniel didn't wait for morning. He retreated to his office, the heavy oak door slamming shut, muffling the sounds of the mansion's sudden upheaval. He pulled up his private server, his fingers flying across the keys. He had spent his career uncovering the secrets of his competitors; now, he turned that weapon on his own life. The files began to pour in—records of adoption agencies that had been liquidated, medical reports that had been altered, and a name that Veronica had kept buried: The Harrington Legacy.
He discovered that Emily had been the target of a hostile takeover of a different kind. Her family, the Clara family, had been in possession of land rights that Veronica’s father had desperately needed. A "tragedy" had been manufactured, a kidnapping masked as an accident, and Emily had been discarded in the system. Veronica hadn't just been cruel; she had been a part of a conspiracy that had erased a lineage to secure a fortune.
Daniel felt a chill that no fireplace could reach. He looked at the photo of Emily he had printed, then at the file of his own business dealings. He realized that the mansion, the wealth, the status—it had all been a facade for a much deeper, more pervasive corruption. He wasn't just a businessman who had been duped; he was a man who had been playing a game with demons, and he had finally decided to burn the board
