Byano stood in the war room of Norwood Enterprises, a sleek, soundproofed space on the fifty-first floor, reserved for crises that demanded absolute privacy. The walls were lined with screens displaying financial charts, security feeds, and a timeline of the anonymous threats that had plagued him for weeks. The latest—a text to Sophia warning, Your art's just the start. Quit, or Elena's next—had escalated the stakes, turning his daughters' dreams into battlegrounds. At fifty-two, Byano had faced corporate espionage, hostile takeovers, and media storms, but this was different. The attacks were personal, striking at his children, his legacy. And the evidence—Victoria's payments to a shell company, the wire transfer to Lydia Hale, Kessler's betrayal—pointed to a conspiracy rooted in his inner circle.
Harlan Graves, his trusted advisor of twenty years, stood at the head of the table, his silver hair catching the dim light. His weathered hands flipped through a dossier, his voice steady but grim. "We've got a lead on the fixer who trashed Sophia's studio. Name's Derek Voss, a mercenary for hire. Footprint matches, and he's been spotted near Langston's office. Likely working for Victoria or Apex, maybe both."
Byano's jaw tightened, his fingers drumming on the polished table. "And the journalist's emails? The server link to Langston's firm?"
"Confirmed," Harlan said, pulling up a screen. "Encrypted emails from a burner account to the tabloid, routed through Langston's server. Lydia Hale's name pops up in the metadata. She's the linchpin—connecting Victoria to the media hits and Marcus's diner meeting."
Byano's mind churned. Lydia, Langston's assistant, had met Marcus, planting seeds of doubt about Byano's past—a shady deal from his startup days, long buried. Victoria's gambit was clear: use the media to destabilize him, sabotage Elena's business and Sophia's art, and exploit Marcus's depression to justify her alimony demands. But the involvement of Apex Corp, led by Victor Kane, suggested a deeper betrayal. Someone close was feeding Kane intel—someone beyond Kessler.
"Harlan," Byano said, his voice low, "who else knew about the Horizon merger details? Only the inner circle had access."
Harlan's eyes narrowed, the weight of the question sinking in. "You, me, Kessler, and three others: Patel, Nguyen, and Claire Montague." He paused, his gaze flickering. "Claire's been pushing hard for that partnership. Too hard."
Byano's stomach twisted. Claire, the tech executive who'd approached him with flattery and veiled seduction, had access to sensitive data. Her "collaboration" pitch at the penthouse reeked of opportunism. Was she Kane's mole? Or another of Victoria's pawns? "Dig into her," Byano said. "Phone records, emails, financials. Everything."
Harlan nodded, but his expression darkened. "There's more. I checked the mansion's security logs from the night of the brick. One camera was disabled—internal access only. Someone with clearance."
Byano's blood ran cold. The inner circle—his most trusted allies—was compromised. He thought of his children: Marcus in therapy, fighting to find purpose; Elena, her EcoThreads empire crumbling under sabotage; Sophia, her art defaced but her spirit unbroken. They were his strength, but also his vulnerability. He couldn't lose them to this war.
He drove to the penthouse, needing to see his daughters. Elena was there, hunched over her laptop, tracking Victoria's shell company payments. Sophia sketched furiously, channeling her rage into a new piece—a phoenix rising from ashes, a symbol of their fight. "Dad," Elena said, looking up, "I found another payment. Same shell company, wired to a PR firm known for smear campaigns."
Sophia's pencil snapped. "Mom's disgusting. She's tearing us apart."
Byano sat, his voice steady despite the storm inside. "We're stronger than her. Harlan's closing in on Lydia. We'll expose the truth."
Elena's eyes were fierce. "And Claire Montague? She's been texting you, offering 'help.' I don't trust her."
"Neither do I," Byano admitted. His phone buzzed—Isabella Reyes, the journalist, again: Let me tell your side, Byano. Before it's too late. He ignored it, but the temptations and betrayals were piling up.
As night fell, Harlan called with a breakthrough: "Claire's been emailing Kane. Coded messages, but they mention 'leverage' and 'Norwood's past.' She's in deep."
Byano's heart sank. Another betrayal, closer than he'd feared. He looked at his daughters, their faces set with determination. The inner circle was shrinking, but his family was his true strength.
Cliffhanger: A security alert from the upstate facility—Marcus has gone missing from the therapy program.