The room felt cramped the moment the figure stepped forward from out of the shadows.
Lia's breath hitched in her throat as the dim light revealed an older man with his sharp eyes unsettlingly familiar. There was an ease of quiet authority in his carriage, the kind that didn't have to announce itself. Leo stiffened beside her, shifting from guarded to full-on defensive in one swift motion.
"Uncle Richard," Leo said coldly. "You shouldn't be here."
Richard Grant smiled faintly, though there was no warmth in it. "Funny. I was about to say the same thing."
Lia's heartbeat quickened. Uncle. The word drummed in her brain. Family. It wasn't corporate sabotage anymore; it ran thick as blood.
"I see you've brought help," Richard continued, his gaze sliding toward Lia. "She looks… young. Innocent."
Lia straightened instinctively. "I'm not here by accident."
Richard laughed. "No. I can guess one isn't.
Without a second thought, Leo moved to stand in front of her. "Say what you came to say."
Richard's eyes darkened. "Very well. You should know, Leo, this company was never meant to be yours alone. Your father didn't tell you everything before he died."
Lia's heart raced. She turned toward Leo, whose jaw had clenched, his eyes unreadable.
"What didn't he tell me?" Leo demanded
Richard hauled out from his coat a worn-out folder and laid it on the table between them. "That Grant Enterprises was built on more than innovation, my friend. It was built on deals—dirty ones. And you, my dear nephew, inherited more than a company—you inherited unfinished sins."
Lia opened the folder in slow motion. Her breath caught.
There were signatures. Contracts. And one name that made her stomach drop.
Carter.
Her family name.
"This…this can't be real," Lia whispered.
Richard's eyes narrowed. "Oh, it's quite real. Your father and Leo's were partners once. Till something went wrong."
Lia's world shifted. "Why are you telling us this now?"
Richard leaned in even closer, his voice dropping to that dangerous whisper. "Because if the truth comes out, it won't just destroy the company. It will destroy both of you."
Leo instinctively took Lia's hand and grounded her. "You're threatening us."
Richard smiled. "No, Leo. I warn you:
He shifted towards the door but only hitched once.
"Some secrets," he said quietly, "were buried for a reason."
The door closed behind him.
An expectant hush fell.
Lia looked at him, her heart in her throat. "What does this mean for us?" Leo met her gaze, eyes dark with conflict.