Chapter 7: The Enemy Aaron Invited Inside
Adrian Vale.
The name stayed in the air like a warning.
I had never met him.
I had never spoken to him.
Yet somehow, he had been moving pieces around my life for months.
Maybe years.
And the most disturbing part wasn’t that he wanted my company.
It was that Aaron knew exactly who he was.
“Aaron.””
My voice was low.
“How long have you known?””
He looked away.
That answer hurt more than anything else.
Because hesitation was becoming his habit.
Every time the truth appeared, he needed a moment to decide whether I deserved it.
“How long?”” I repeated.
Aaron took a breath.
“Since before we got married.””
The words hit differently.
Before we got married.
Before the billionaire image.
Before the private jets.
Before everyone believed Aaron Prescott had built an empire alone.
There had been someone else.
Someone hidden.
“Explain.””
Aaron looked at the ground.
“Adrian was one of my first investors.””
“You said he disappeared.””
“He did.””
“That doesn’t explain why he’s connected to my company.””
Aaron rubbed his forehead.
“He invested before Prescott Technologies was even called Prescott Technologies.””
I stared at him.
“What was it called?””
He hesitated.
“Bennett Applied Systems.””
My heart stopped.
Because that was my family’s company.
The research division my father created.
The division responsible for the patents.
The division that had eventually become the foundation of everything.
“You knew.””
Aaron looked at me.
“Yes.””
“You knew Adrian was interested in my family’s technology.””
“Yes.””
“And you still accepted his money?””
His expression changed.
“I didn’t know his intentions.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
I stepped closer.
“You knew enough.””
He didn’t answer.
Because he did.
Years ago, when Aaron came to me with his dream, he had told me he needed investors who believed in innovation.
I had supported him.
I had helped him.
But I had never known one of those investors had been watching my family’s work.
Waiting.
Planning.
“Aaron.””
My voice hardened.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
He looked at me.
“Because I thought I could handle it.””
There it was.
The sentence that explained everything.
Not because he wanted to protect me.
Because he believed he could manage things without me.
The same man who built his company because he trusted my help had spent years convincing himself he no longer needed it.
“You thought you could handle Adrian Vale?””
“Yes.””
“And how did that work out?””
He had no answer.
Because the answer was standing right in front of him.
Adrian had returned.
He had manipulated ownership records.
He had created a path to control my company.
And he had used Aaron’s own decisions to do it.
Victoria suddenly spoke.
“You’re blaming Aaron for someone else’s actions?””
I turned toward her.
“No.””
I looked at Aaron.
“I’m blaming him for opening the door.””
Victoria’s expression darkened.
“You don’t understand business.””
I smiled faintly.
“I understand loyalty.””
She looked offended.
Of course she did.
People who valued power always found loyalty inconvenient.
Jasmine stepped forward carefully.
“I need to tell you something.””
Everyone looked at her.
Including Aaron.
She looked nervous now.
Not fake nervousness.
Real fear.
“What?”” I asked.
She opened her folder.
“There’s another document.””
Aaron immediately turned.
“Jasmine.””
She ignored him.
“A copy of the communication between Adrian Vale’s office and Prescott Technologies.””
My eyes narrowed.
“Why do you have that?””
She looked down.
“Because I was asked to organize the files.””
“By who?””
She looked at Aaron.
Then at me.
“By Aaron.””
His expression changed.
“What?””
“You asked me to review the acquisition documents.””
“When?””
“Two months ago.””
Aaron shook his head.
“I never asked you to contact Adrian.””
“I didn’t.””
She opened the folder.
“He contacted me.””
Silence.
The paper shook slightly in her hand.
“He knew I was involved with the restructuring.””
I took the document.
The first page was an email.
The sender name:
Adrian Vale.
The message was short.
*The wife will eventually challenge the transfer. When she does, activate the secondary agreement.*
My stomach tightened.
I read the sentence again.
The wife.
Not Alyssa.
Not Mrs. Prescott.
The wife.
Like I was just a predictable obstacle.
I continued reading.
*Aaron will resist at first. Use his concern for the company against him.*
I looked up.
Aaron’s face was pale.
Because he was reading over my shoulder.
“He knew,” Aaron whispered.
I looked at him.
“Yes.””
“He knew I wouldn’t agree.””
“No.””
I held the document.
“He knew you would convince yourself you were doing the right thing.””
The truth hurt because it was accurate.
Aaron had always wanted to save something.
A company.
A dream.
A reputation.
He had just forgotten that people were part of those things.
Not obstacles.
Not assets.
People.
Victoria reached for the document.
I moved it away.
“No.””
Her eyes narrowed.
“You’re going to destroy your own family.””
I looked at her.
“You keep saying family when you mean control.””
Her expression hardened.
“You have no idea what I sacrificed.””
I almost believed her.
Almost.
Until I remembered the documents.
The forged signature.
The hidden transfers.
The attempt to erase me.
Sacrifice did not give anyone the right to steal.
My phone rang again.
This time, it was my father.
I answered immediately.
“Alyssa.””
His voice was serious.
“I know about Adrian.””
I closed my eyes.
Of course he did.
My father always seemed to know things before anyone else.
“How?””
“Because I’ve been tracking him for months.””
I looked at Aaron.
“Why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because I wasn’t sure.””
“Sure about what?””
A pause.
“Whether Aaron was involved willingly.””
The words made Aaron look up.
My father continued.
“Listen carefully.””
I moved away from the group.
“Adrian doesn’t want the company.””
I frowned.
“What?””
“He wants the patents.””
I looked back at the jet.
At the company logo.
“The company is just the vehicle.””
My father’s voice became quieter.
“He needs legal control of the company to access the technology.””
My stomach dropped.
“So the ownership transfer…”
“Was never about money.””
A pause.
“It was about access.””
Everything suddenly connected.
The jet.
The board meeting.
The forged signature.
The fake ownership structure.
It was all a distraction.
While Aaron and I fought over control, Adrian was moving toward the real prize.
The patents.
My father continued.
“There’s one thing you need to know.””
“What?””
“Adrian doesn’t work alone.””
I felt a chill.
“Who is helping him?””
Silence.
Then:
“Someone inside Prescott Technologies.””
I looked toward the executives.
The people who had watched quietly.
The people who had benefited from Aaron’s success.
The people who knew the company from the inside.
“Do you know who?””
“No.””
My father paused.
“But I know one thing.””
“What?””
“The person helping Adrian has access to the original patent files.””
I looked at Aaron.
Because there was only one group of people with that access.
The founding executives.
The ones who had been with Aaron from the beginning.
My father continued.
“And Alyssa…”
“Yes?””
“Be careful.””
I swallowed.
“Why?””
“Because whoever is helping Adrian knew exactly how to hurt you.””
I looked down at the documents.
The forged signature.
The transfer.
The betrayal.
Then I looked at Aaron.
The man who had once been my safest place.
Now standing in the middle of the storm.
My father’s final words came quietly.
“They didn’t choose your husband by accident.””
I froze.
“What do you mean?””
“They chose him because they knew you would never expect him to betray you.””
The call ended.
I stood there, holding the phone.
And for the first time, I wondered something I never wanted to consider.
Was Aaron manipulated?
Or was he the perfect person to manipulate because part of him wanted the same thing?
Before I could answer, Aaron walked toward me.
His face was different.
No arrogance.
No anger.
Only fear.
“Alyssa.””
I looked at him.
“What?””
He stopped.
Then he said:
“There’s something else you need to know about Adrian.””
I waited.
“Something I never told you.””
My heart sank.
“What?””
Aaron looked toward the aircraft.
Toward the company logo.
Toward the life we built together.
Then he whispered:
“Adrian wasn’t just my investor.””
May you like
A pause.
“He was the person who introduced me to you.””
