Byano sat in the quiet of his penthouse study, the city's skyline a glittering expanse beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, its lights blurred by a late September drizzle. The courtroom battle had left him raw, Victoria's testimony a calculated performance of victimhood that nearly swayed the judge. But Lydia Hale's confession—admitting her role in the media leaks under Victoria's orders—had shifted the tide. Now, Harlan's latest discovery burned in Byano's mind: a hidden document in Lydia's files detailing a bribe from his startup days, a desperate deal to secure funding when he was twenty-four, long buried and rectified. The document named Claire Montague as the source who'd unearthed it, tying her to Victor Kane and Apex Corp. The revelation was a gut punch—Claire, with her calculated charm, had been a traitor in his inner circle, feeding Victoria's war.
At fifty-two, Byano had built Norwood Enterprises from a garage dream to a global empire, but the weight of his past mistakes now threatened to unravel it. The anonymous emails—Your past is coming—were no longer abstract threats. They were precise, surgical, aimed at his vulnerabilities. He rubbed his temples, the ache of Marcus's absence sharp. His son was safe in the upstate therapy program, making fragile progress, but the tabloid lies about his "suicide attempt" had nearly broken him. Elena and Sophia, his pillars, were downstairs, strategizing with Harlan. Their businesses—EcoThreads and Sophia's art—were collateral damage in this war, yet their loyalty fueled Byano's resolve.
He opened his laptop, reviewing the document Harlan had sent. The bribe—a $50,000 payment to a city official for a contract in his startup's early days—had been a youthful lapse, repaid with interest years ago. Byano had disclosed it to his board, but Claire's digging suggested she'd shared it with Kane, who'd fed it to Victoria. Was Claire the anonymous emailer? Or was there another player?
A knock interrupted his thoughts. Elena entered, her face etched with determination. "Dad, Harlan's got Claire's emails to Kane. They're coded, but clear enough—she sent him the bribe details months ago, before the divorce escalated."
Sophia followed, her sketchbook tucked under her arm, her eyes blazing. "She was at my art show, Dad, cozying up to you. She's been playing us all."
Byano nodded, his voice grim. "She's done. I'm calling an emergency board meeting to remove her. But we need to know who else she's working with."
Harlan joined them, his silver hair disheveled from late nights. "We traced the anonymous emails to a server in Jersey. Same encryption as Claire's messages to Kane. But there's a third party—someone higher up. I'm betting on Kane himself."
Byano's mind flashed to his early days with Kane, a rival coder with a ruthless streak. Their falling out had been bitter, Kane resenting Byano's success. Now, Apex's competing AI platform, built on stolen Norwood specs, was proof of his vendetta. But using Claire to dig up Byano's past? That was personal.
The family convened in the living room, the air heavy with resolve. Elena shared her latest find: another payment from Victoria's shell company, this time to a private investigator. "She's been digging into you for years, Dad," Elena said. "Probably knew about the bribe before Claire."
Sophia flipped open her sketchbook, revealing a new piece—a fractured family, shadows lifting. "This is us, Dad. We're stronger than her lies."
Byano's chest tightened with pride. "You're right. We end this in court. Evelyn's prepping to expose the investigator's findings."
As they planned, Byano's phone buzzed—a call from Dr. Carter. "Marcus wrote a poem today," she said. "It's about hope. He wants you to read it." The news was a flicker of light in the darkness.
But as Byano headed to meet Evelyn, a new anonymous email arrived: Your bribe was just the start. Ask about the accident. His blood ran cold. An accident—a car crash from his startup days, a supplier's death he'd been cleared of—had been buried with the bribe. Who knew?
Cliffhanger: Elena uncovers a photo in the investigator's files, showing Byano at the crash site, a detail never publicized.