CHAPTER 8 — THE WOMAN HIS WIFE TRUSTED
Victor Hale had spent his entire life destroying enemies.
Competitors.
Rivals.
People who tried to steal his company.
People who tried to challenge his power.
He knew how to fight people who stood against him.
But he had never prepared himself for the possibility that the danger was standing beside him all along.
Inside his own family.
The letter from Elena remained on his desk all night.
Victor had read it dozens of times.
Every word.
Every sentence.
Every painful pause.
It was Elena's handwriting.
There was no doubt.
The woman he loved had left him a message before she died.
A message she was never able to deliver herself.
Victor stared at the paper.
"The night Ethan was born was not only the happiest night of my life..."
"It was also the night I discovered someone in our family wanted me gone."
His fingers tightened.
"Who were you afraid of, Elena?"
His voice broke.
"Why didn't you trust me?"
But there was no answer.
Only silence.
The next morning, Victor found An in the nursery.
She was organizing Ethan's clothes.
But he noticed something different.
She looked exhausted.
Like she had been carrying a weight for too long.
Victor stood at the door.
"An."
She turned.
The moment she saw his face, she knew.
He had read the letter.
"What did she tell you?"
Victor walked inside.
"She knew."
An became still.
"She knew someone was trying to hurt her."
A painful silence followed.
Victor looked at her.
"And you knew."
An slowly nodded.
"Yes."
The honesty surprised him.
No excuses.
No lies.
Just the truth.
"Why?"
His voice was filled with pain.
"Why did everyone know except me?"
An looked away.
"Because Elena asked me not to tell you."
Victor's eyes darkened.
"She asked you?"
"Yes."
"Why would my wife ask a stranger to keep secrets from me?"
An looked at Ethan.
"Because I wasn't a stranger."
Victor froze.
An took a deep breath.
"Elena and I met before I worked for you."
Victor frowned.
"Where?"
"In a hospital."
She paused.
"Before she became Mrs. Hale."
Victor said nothing.
An continued.
"Back then, Elena wasn't surrounded by wealth."
"She was alone."
"Scared."
"Pregnant."
Victor's expression changed.
"Pregnant?"
An nodded.
"She was afraid."
"Afraid of what?"
An looked at him.
"Of losing everything."
Years earlier...
Before the Hale empire.
Before the luxury penthouse.
Before the world knew Elena Hale as the wife of a billionaire.
She was just a young woman trying to survive.
An had met her when Elena was volunteering at a community clinic.
Elena was different from the rich people An had encountered.
She listened.
She cared.
She helped people without expecting anything.
That was why An trusted her.
And Elena trusted her back.
Over time, their friendship grew.
Until one day…
Elena discovered something dangerous.
A secret involving the Hale family.
Back in the present…
Victor stared at An.
"What secret?"
An hesitated.
"I don't know everything."
His patience disappeared.
"Everyone keeps saying that."
He stepped closer.
"My wife died."
His voice became heavier.
"My son almost got hurt."
"And everyone around me knows something I don't."
An looked at him.
"I know how that feels."
Victor stopped.
Because there was pain in her voice.
Real pain.
Not guilt.
Not fear.
Pain.
"Elena didn't trust many people."
An whispered.
"But she trusted you."
Victor looked confused.
"Me?"
"Yes."
"Then why didn't she tell me?"
"Because she knew what you would do."
Victor looked away.
An continued:
"Victor, Elena knew you loved her."
"But she also knew your love came with a dangerous side."
He frowned.
"My anger."
An nodded.
"You don't just protect people."
"You destroy anyone who hurts them."
The words were painfully accurate.
"Elena was afraid that if you found out too soon, you would attack the wrong person."
Victor became silent.
Because he knew.
If someone had threatened Elena…
He would have burned everything down.
Suddenly, Ethan started crying.
Both of them turned.
Victor moved immediately.
This time, he didn't panic.
He picked up his son.
An watched.
"You're getting better."
Victor looked at her.
"Because you taught me."
A small smile appeared on her face.
For the first time…
Victor wasn't speaking to her like an employee.
He was speaking to her like someone important.
Later that afternoon…
Victor made a decision.
He opened Elena's old phone records.
Messages.
Emails.
Everything.
He needed answers.
Hours passed.
Then…
One message appeared.
Sent three days before Elena died.
The recipient's name was hidden.
But the message was clear.
"I know what you did. If anything happens to me, Victor will find out."
Victor's blood turned cold.
Because below the message…
Was the name of the person who received it.
A name he knew very well.
A name he never expected.
Richard Hale.
His own father.
Victor immediately stood.
"No."
He stared at the screen.
"My father?"
The man who built the foundation of the Hale empire.
The man who taught him everything.
The man he trusted.
Could he really have been involved?
Before Victor could process it, his phone rang.
Unknown number.
He answered.
A distorted voice spoke.
"You should stop searching."
Victor's eyes narrowed.
"Who is this?"
"You already lost your wife."
A pause.
"Do you want to lose your son too?"
Victor's entire body went cold.
"Where are you?"
The person laughed softly.
"You still don't understand, do you?"
Then the call ended.
Victor rushed to the nursery.
Ethan was sleeping.
Safe.
But Victor didn't feel relieved.
Because now he understood something.
The person who wanted Elena gone…
Was still watching.
Still waiting.
And the only person who knew enough to help him…
Was the woman he had once accused.
The maid.
An Parker.
That night, Victor stood outside An's room.
He raised his hand to knock.
Then stopped.
For the first time in his life…
Victor Hale was afraid.
Not of losing money.
Not of losing power.
But of losing the only two people who had brought life back into his empty world.
Finally…
He knocked.
An opened the door.
"Victor?"
His voice was quiet.
"Stay."
She looked surprised.
"Stay?"
He nodded.
"Not as a maid."
A pause.
"Stay because Ethan needs you."
Another pause.
"And because..."
Victor struggled with the words.
"...I need to know the truth."
An looked at him.
Then slowly said:
"Victor, the truth will hurt."
He nodded.
"I know."
Her eyes filled with sadness.
"Then you should prepare yourself."
A cold wind moved through the open window.
May you like
Because the truth about Elena's death…
Was only beginning.
