Chapter 19: Ghosts in the Bloodline
Elara stared at Dominic, her voice tight.
"Who betrayed us?"
Dominic hesitated, then spoke slowly.
"Your uncle… Richard Hart. He's been working with the Roths since before your marriage contract."
The words hit like a hammer to the chest.
"No," she breathed. "That's not possible. He raised me after my parents died."
"He also sold your father's company piece by piece to the Roths. Your mother tried to stop him — that's why they silenced her."
Elara sat down, every muscle trembling.
Aaron knelt beside her. "Elara…"
Tears burned at her eyes, but she held them back.
"No more lies. No more secrets. We end this."
Hours later, a coded message pinged through the safehouse network. It was from her—Natalia Roth.
The heiress of the Roth empire.
"We need to talk. You're not the only one they betrayed."
Aaron stood behind her, reading over her shoulder.
"It's a trap."
"Or it's the opening we've been waiting for," Elara replied.
They arranged to meet at a neutral location — the ruins of Elara's childhood estate, burned in a mysterious fire years ago.
Natalia waited under the broken archway, flanked by one guard.
"You came," she said. "I didn't think you would."
Elara's voice was steel. "Talk."
Natalia held up a file. "My father ordered your mother's death. And now he's trying to remove me too. We can help each other."
Elara's instincts screamed not to trust her.
But something in Natalia's eyes — the fury, the grief — felt real.
"We do this my way," Elara warned.
Natalia nodded. "Agreed."
Back at the safehouse, Elara gathered the team.
"We take them down from the inside. With Natalia's access and Dominic's intel, we have one shot."
Aaron asked quietly, "And your uncle?"
Elara's gaze went cold.
"He chose his side. Now I choose mine."