Chapter 6: The Brother Who Lied
The archive went silent.
Not the quiet of a peaceful room.
The quiet of a room where everyone suddenly understood the danger.
Nathan Carter stood in the doorway, one hand holding a gun.
The other rested against the doorframe.
He looked nothing like the little brother Simone remembered.
Not the boy who used to steal cookies from the kitchen before dinner.
Not the teenager who called her whenever he needed advice.
Not the man who hugged her after she became CEO and told her he was proud.
This Nathan looked exhausted.
Like someone who had spent years carrying a secret too heavy for him.
Simone held the leather notebook tighter.
“Nathan.””
His eyes moved to the book.
“Put it down.””
She stared at him.
“Why?””
His jaw tightened.
“Because you don’t know what you’re holding.””
A bitter laugh escaped her.
“That’s interesting.””
“What?””
“Everyone keeps telling me I don’t understand.””
Nathan’s expression changed.
“Simone—”
“No.””
Her voice echoed through the archive.
“I’m tired of people deciding what I can handle.””
Daniel stepped forward.
“Nathan, lower the weapon.””
Nathan immediately aimed the gun toward him.
“Don’t.””
Daniel stopped.
Simone noticed.
That was important.
Daniel wasn’t just afraid of Nathan.
He was afraid of what Nathan knew.
“You knew he was involved,” Simone said.
Daniel looked at her.
“I suspected.””
“Everyone suspects.””
Her eyes moved between them.
“Everyone knows something.””
Nathan lowered his gaze.
“Simone, listen to me.””
“No.””
“Please.””
The word surprised her.
Nathan almost never begged.
“You broke into my company’s files.””
“I was trying to protect you.””
“You stood in that ballroom while Victoria humiliated me.””
“I was trying to stop it.””
“You lied to me.””
Nathan flinched.
That one landed.
Because it was true.
Simone stepped closer.
“Do you know what hurts the most?””
Nathan didn’t answer.
“It’s not the gun.””
His expression tightened.
“It’s not the Ashfords.””
She looked at him.
“It’s knowing you were standing there while I was being destroyed, and I had no idea whose side you were on.””
Nathan looked away.
For a moment, he looked like her brother again.
Not an enemy.
Not a stranger.
Just someone who was lost.
“I never wanted this.””
“Then explain.””
Nathan stayed silent.
“Explain why you’re holding a gun.””
His fingers tightened slightly.
Then he lowered it.
Only a little.
But enough.
“I’m not here to hurt you.””
Simone didn’t move.
“Then why are you here?””
Nathan looked at the notebook.
“Because that book can destroy everything.””
“Good.””
His eyes lifted.
“You don’t understand.””
“No, Nathan.””
She shook her head.
“I understand perfectly.””
She held up the notebook.
“This is proof.””
“Proof of what?””
“That the Ashfords stole money. That they lied. That they built their empire on corruption.””
Nathan looked at her sadly.
“And what happens after?””
Simone frowned.
“What?””
“You release this. The Ashfords collapse.””
“Yes.””
“The redevelopment collapses.””
“Yes.””
“Thousands of people lose jobs.””
Simone stared at him.
“And you’re defending them?””
“No.””
His voice sharpened.
“I’m warning you.””
He stepped into the archive.
“The Ashfords are not the only people involved.””
Daniel looked away.
Simone noticed.
“What aren’t you telling me?””
Nathan didn’t answer.
“Nathan.””
He looked at the floor.
“The people behind this are bigger than the foundation.””
“How much bigger?””
Nathan looked at her.
“Bigger than Carter Meridian.””
The words were quiet.
But they carried weight.
Maya stepped forward.
“Who?””
Nathan hesitated.
Then he said:
“The people who built the entire system.””
Simone almost smiled.
“That’s not an answer.””
“It’s the only answer I can give you.””
“No.””
Her voice became colder.
“You don’t get to decide what I deserve to know.””
Nathan closed his eyes.
Because he knew that tone.
The same tone she used in board meetings.
The same tone that made executives stop lying.
“Fine.””
He looked at the notebook.
“Your father didn’t discover the Ashford fraud.””
Simone froze.
“What?””
“He discovered something much bigger.””
“What?””
Nathan swallowed.
“The Ashfords were being used.””
Nobody moved.
Even Daniel looked surprised.
“By who?”” Simone asked.
Nathan looked toward the ceiling cameras.
Then lowered his voice.
“By an investment network that controls dozens of foundations, companies, and political organizations.””
Maya frowned.
“That sounds impossible.””
Nathan shook his head.
“It’s not.””
Simone watched him carefully.
“You’re saying the Ashfords are just a front.””
“Yes.””
“And my father found out.””
“Yes.””
“And that’s why he disappeared.””
Nathan didn’t answer.
Simone felt the room change.
“You know what happened to my father.””
Nathan looked at her.
“Yes.””
The word cut deeper than the gun.
Simone’s voice became quieter.
“Tell me.””
Nathan looked away.
“I can’t.””
She stared at him.
“You can’t?””
“I promised.””
“To who?””
Nathan didn’t respond.
Simone stepped closer.
“To who, Nathan?””
Finally, he said:
“Dad.””
The answer broke something inside her.
Because there was only one person Nathan could mean.
Their father.
The man she buried.
The man she mourned.
The man she believed left them forever.
“You saw him.””
Nathan nodded.
“When?””
“Three years after his death.””
Simone’s face went pale.
“That’s impossible.””
“I know.””
“Where?””
Nathan looked at the notebook.
“He found me.””
The archive felt smaller.
“What did he say?””
Nathan’s voice became softer.
“He told me to stay away from you.””
Simone stared.
“Why?””
“Because you were building something powerful.””
“That doesn’t make sense.””
“He knew you.””
Nathan looked at her.
“He knew once you discovered the truth, you wouldn’t stop.””
Simone felt tears threaten.
Not because she was weak.
Because every answer created ten more questions.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
Nathan looked devastated.
“Because he made me promise.””
“You chose his promise over me?””
“No.””
Nathan shook his head.
“I chose keeping you alive.””
The words echoed.
Then a sound interrupted them.
A phone vibrating.
Everyone looked toward Daniel.
His face changed.
Slowly, he reached into his pocket.
Simone noticed.
“You have a phone?””
Daniel hesitated.
“Daniel.””
He pulled it out.
A message appeared.
One sentence.
*You failed. Finish it.*
Simone saw it.
Nathan saw it.
Daniel looked terrified.
“Who sent that?”” Simone asked.
Daniel didn’t answer.
“Nobody leaves this room until you answer.””
Daniel looked at her.
“I don’t know.””
Nathan laughed bitterly.
“You still protect them.””
“I’m trying to protect everyone.””
“No.””
Nathan stepped closer.
“You’re trying to protect yourself.””
Daniel’s face hardened.
“You have no idea what I sacrificed.””
“Neither do you.””
The tension between them exploded.
Simone raised her hand.
“Enough.””
Both men stopped.
She looked at Nathan.
“You said the notebook can destroy everything.””
“Yes.””
“Then why are you trying to take it?””
Nathan looked at her.
“Because if the wrong people get it, they’ll use it against you.””
“And if you get it?””
Silence.
Simone nodded slowly.
“That’s what I thought.””
Nathan’s face fell.
“You think I’m the enemy.””
“I think I don’t know who you are anymore.””
Those words hurt him more than anger.
A loud crash came from upstairs.
Everyone turned.
Marcus immediately moved toward the staircase.
“Someone else is here.””
Nathan’s expression changed.
Not fear.
Recognition.
“They found us.””
The lights flickered.
Then every monitor in the archive turned on.
A single image appeared.
A man sitting in a dark room.
Older.
Gray hair.
Calm.
Watching them.
Simone stared.
Because she knew that face.
She had seen it before.
In old family photographs.
In memories.
In the pieces of a life she thought she understood.
Maya whispered:
“Who is that?””
Simone couldn’t answer.
Her father’s face looked back at her from the screen.
Older.
Alive.
And the message below him appeared.
*SIMONE, IF YOU ARE SEEING THIS, IT MEANS YOUR BROTHER FAILED TO KEEP YOU AWAY.*
Her heart stopped.
The recording continued.
Her father looked directly into the camera.
And said:
“My daughter, I’m sorry.””
A pause.
Then:
“But the man standing beside you is not Nathan.””
Simone slowly turned.
Nathan’s face changed.
Because he knew what was coming.
The video continued.
“Do not trust him.””
The archive doors suddenly unlocked.
And before anyone could move, Nathan whispered:
“She knows.””
Simone looked at him.
“Who?””
Nathan stared at the screen.
“The person who killed our father.””
The monitor flickered.
And the final image appeared.
A woman standing beside Michael Carter.
A woman Simone recognized instantly.
Because she had spent the entire night believing she was the enemy.
Victoria Ashford.
May you like
And beneath the image were four words:
*SHE WAS HIS PARTNER.*
