Priya\u2019s desk was empty when Luna and Adam returned to the office.<\/p>\n
Not simply unattended.<\/p>\n
Empty.<\/p>\n
Her framed photograph of her parents was gone. The ceramic cup that usually held three black pens and one red pen had vanished. A small jade plant someone had given her after a product launch was missing from the windowsill.<\/p>\n
Luna stood in the doorway of the executive reception area and looked at the cleared surfaces.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knew.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam stopped beside her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen did she leave?\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi Chen answered from behind them.<\/p>\n
\u201cBuilding security shows her badge exiting at 11:18.\u201d<\/p>\n
Less than an hour after Adam\u2019s interview.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid anyone stop her?\u201d Luna asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had not identified her workstation yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you call her?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPhone disconnected.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna closed her eyes.<\/p>\n
Adam watched the composure rebuild itself.<\/p>\n
By the time she opened them, she was Vice President Sterling again.<\/p>\n
\u201cLock her accounts. Preserve her emails. Pull elevator and parking footage. Notify legal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe already started.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cGood.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam stepped toward Priya\u2019s desk.<\/p>\n
A faint rectangle in the dust showed where her monitor stand had sat. He opened the top drawer.<\/p>\n
Empty.<\/p>\n
Second drawer.<\/p>\n
Empty.<\/p>\n
Third.<\/p>\n
A single sealed envelope lay against the back.<\/p>\n
His name was written across the front.<\/p>\n
ADAM.<\/p>\n
He froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cLuna.\u201d<\/p>\n
She came over.<\/p>\n
Naomi moved closer too.<\/p>\n
Adam lifted the envelope without opening it.<\/p>\n
Naomi said, \u201cWe should photograph it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think it matters?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think everything matters right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Security photographed the envelope in place, then both sides after Adam removed it.<\/p>\n
There was no stamp.<\/p>\n
No return address.<\/p>\n
Adam opened it with a letter opener from Luna\u2019s desk.<\/p>\n
Inside was one sheet of paper.<\/p>\n
He read the first line.<\/p>\n
Adam\u2014<\/p>\n
If you are reading this, I am already gone, and Luna is probably convinced I betrayed her.<\/p>\n
Adam looked at Luna.<\/p>\n
Her face revealed nothing.<\/p>\n
He continued.<\/p>\n
She is partly right.<\/p>\n
The letter was handwritten.<\/p>\n
Priya claimed she had copied files, but not for Derek. She wrote that several months earlier someone had approached her with evidence that Sterling Marketing Solutions had hidden financial irregularities after Luna\u2019s father died. The person insisted Derek was preparing to exploit the trust and sell company assets once he gained control.<\/p>\n
Adam read more slowly.<\/p>\n
Priya wrote that she had agreed to supply information because she believed she was protecting Luna.<\/p>\n
Then the demands changed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey blackmailed her,\u201d Adam said.<\/p>\n
Luna held out her hand.<\/p>\n
He gave her the letter.<\/p>\n
She read silently.<\/p>\n
The person had learned that Priya\u2019s younger brother had falsified documents during a failed business venture overseas. According to the letter, prosecution remained possible. Priya had been threatened with exposure unless she continued providing internal files.<\/p>\n
Luna reached the final paragraph.<\/p>\n
Her fingers tightened around the page.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
She handed it back.<\/p>\n
Adam read.<\/p>\n
Do not assume Derek is the person controlling this. He is dangerous, but he is also being fed information. Someone wants him to believe he is winning.<\/p>\n
Below that:<\/p>\n
Adam, the background report on you was altered before Luna received it.<\/p>\n
Adam looked up.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat does that mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna took the page again.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe report I saw may not have been the original.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat could they have changed?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi said, \u201cWe need the source file.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna immediately called her attorney.<\/p>\n
The original report should have been stored with outside counsel.<\/p>\n
Ten minutes later, they learned it was gone.<\/p>\n
Not deleted.<\/p>\n
Replaced.<\/p>\n
A file with the same name and creation date remained on the server, but metadata showed it had been modified days before Adam received Luna\u2019s offer.<\/p>\n
Adam sat at the conference table while Luna paced.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomebody wanted you to choose me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna stopped.<\/p>\n
The sentence sounded worse once spoken.<\/p>\n
Adam continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou said you picked me because I was financially desperate, unattached, boring enough not to attract attention, and outside your social circle.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI did not say boring.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was heavily implied.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not the time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, it really is. What if those facts were manipulated?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe debts were real.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father\u2019s bills were real. My rent was real. My mother\u2019s mortgage was real.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut perhaps something in the report made you appear more suitable than you were.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi returned holding a tablet.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe found surveillance footage of Priya leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAlone?\u201d Luna asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The video showed Priya crossing the lobby in a gray coat carrying one tote bag. She looked composed. She did not hurry.<\/p>\n
Then Adam noticed something.<\/p>\n
\u201cBack it up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi did.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere.\u201d<\/p>\n
Priya paused near the revolving door and glanced toward the lobby caf\u00e9.<\/p>\n
A man sat at a table with his back to the camera.<\/p>\n
He wore a dark coat and baseball cap.<\/p>\n
Priya did not approach him, but she touched two fingers to the strap of her bag.<\/p>\n
The man stood thirty seconds later.<\/p>\n
\u201cFollow him,\u201d Luna said.<\/p>\n
Naomi switched cameras.<\/p>\n
The man exited through a side door.<\/p>\n
Another camera captured his profile for perhaps half a second.<\/p>\n
Adam leaned toward the screen.<\/p>\n
He had never seen him.<\/p>\n
Luna had.<\/p>\n
Her entire body stiffened.<\/p>\n
\u201cPause.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi froze the image.<\/p>\n
\u201cWho is that?\u201d Adam asked.<\/p>\n
Luna did not answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cLuna.\u201d<\/p>\n
She walked closer to the screen.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is Graham Vale.\u201d<\/p>\n
The missing investigator.<\/p>\n
Adam stood.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the guy who researched me is coordinating with your assistant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd one of them altered my report.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cApparently.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi looked at Luna.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you want me to notify police?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna hesitated.<\/p>\n
Adam saw it.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy wouldn\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause we do not yet know whether a crime occurred beyond unauthorized computer access.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBlackmail?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPriya\u2019s letter alleges blackmail. We cannot verify it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s enough to call someone.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI am thinking.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam pushed away from the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, you are calculating.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her eyes snapped toward him.<\/p>\n
\u201cSomeone manipulated your assistant, stole legal documents, investigated my family, altered my background report, and contacted my mother. At what point does this stop being a boardroom problem?\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi quietly stepped out, closing the door behind her.<\/p>\n
Luna lowered her voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am trying to avoid handing Derek a public scandal that could destroy the company before we know what we are dealing with.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere it is.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe company.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, Adam. The company. Five hundred and eighty people work here.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd that means what? We wait until whoever is doing this decides to frighten my mother again?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI said I would protect her.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou also said this arrangement wouldn\u2019t touch my family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna flinched.<\/p>\n
It was small, but he saw it.<\/p>\n
He immediately regretted the cruelty.<\/p>\n
Still, the fear underneath his anger remained.<\/p>\n
\u201cI need to know what was in the original report.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo do I.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen find Graham.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI intend to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam laughed sharply.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou always intend to solve everything yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause when I trust other people, this happens.\u201d<\/p>\n
She gestured toward Priya\u2019s empty desk.<\/p>\n
The sentence struck him differently.<\/p>\n
Luna looked toward the doorway after saying it, as though she wished she could call it back.<\/p>\n
Adam\u2019s anger eased slightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cPriya may have been trying to protect you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe stole from me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe also left a warning.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter helping someone compromise confidential files.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was scared.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo was I when my father died. I did not betray everyone around me.\u201d<\/p>\n
The words emerged too quickly.<\/p>\n
Adam heard what lay beneath them.<\/p>\n
Not Priya.<\/p>\n
Something older.<\/p>\n
He sat down.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat happened when your father died?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna\u2019s expression closed.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing relevant.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAdam.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat did he do?\u201d<\/p>\n
She looked at him for a long time.<\/p>\n
Then she sat opposite him.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy father was ill for almost a year. Near the end, Derek convinced him I was trying to take control before he died.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWere you?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to prevent Derek from selling two divisions to cover his own failed investments.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cDerek had personal losses?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSignificant ones.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes he still?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI do not know.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou never checked?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course I checked. Nothing current appeared.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut somebody is feeding him information.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam thought of Priya\u2019s letter.<\/p>\n
Someone wants him to believe he is winning.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if Derek needs money again?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna looked toward the window.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe always needs something.\u201d<\/p>\n
Naomi returned half an hour later with more bad news.<\/p>\n
Graham Vale\u2019s known home address had been vacated.<\/p>\n
His vehicle registration led to a car sold three weeks earlier.<\/p>\n
His business bank account had been largely emptied.<\/p>\n
Priya had purchased an international airline ticket to Toronto but had not boarded the flight.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re disappearing,\u201d Adam said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOr making it look as if they are,\u201d Naomi replied.<\/p>\n
By evening, Luna\u2019s lawyers had contacted law enforcement regarding the unauthorized system access and alleged blackmail. Adam spent the afternoon answering questions, signing statements, and trying not to imagine strangers sitting outside his mother\u2019s house.<\/p>\n
At seven, he and Luna finally returned to the penthouse.<\/p>\n
Neither had eaten.<\/p>\n
Adam opened the refrigerator.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you have anything that isn\u2019t arranged by color?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSecond shelf.\u201d<\/p>\n
He found eggs, cheese, spinach, and leftover potatoes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m cooking.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou cook?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI survived before your Michelin-star sushi.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI remain unconvinced.\u201d<\/p>\n
Twenty minutes later, they ate scrambled eggs and crisp potatoes at the kitchen island.<\/p>\n
It was the least glamorous meal the penthouse had probably seen.<\/p>\n
Luna finished everything.<\/p>\n
Adam noticed.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou liked it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was adequate.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had seconds.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was hungry.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHigh praise.\u201d<\/p>\n
For several minutes, they almost felt like two ordinary people after a terrible workday.<\/p>\n
Then Adam remembered the altered report.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if I wasn\u2019t supposed to be the person you chose?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna set down her fork.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat if Graham inserted something to push you toward me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI chose you from several candidates.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam froze.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeveral?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna immediately realized the problem.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou interviewed husbands?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou had a list?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA preliminary list.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSix.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam stared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis keeps getting more romantic.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never contacted the others.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy me?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo. You told me what was in the report. Now we know it was altered.\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna looked down at her hands.<\/p>\n
Adam waited.<\/p>\n
Finally she said, \u201cBecause I knew your work.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou were the only person on the list I had actually observed over time.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFive conversations in five years.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot conversations. Work.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is worse.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew how you behaved when nobody senior was watching. I knew you stayed with junior staff when deadlines ran late. I knew you corrected mistakes without humiliating people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adam looked at her.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat wasn\u2019t in the report?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThen why did you pretend this was entirely analytical?\u201d<\/p>\n
Luna\u2019s gaze met his.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause telling you I trusted your character would have made the offer feel more personal.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you didn\u2019t want that.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her answer came almost too quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause personal things become leverage.\u201d<\/p>\n
The kitchen suddenly felt very still.<\/p>\n
Adam wanted to ask who had taught her that.<\/p>\n
He already knew part of the answer.<\/p>\n
His phone chimed.<\/p>\n
A message from an unknown number.<\/p>\n
There was no text.<\/p>\n
Only a photograph.<\/p>\n
Adam opened it.<\/p>\n
His mother stood outside her house in Texas that afternoon, carrying groceries from her car.<\/p>\n
The image had been taken from across the street.<\/p>\n
Below it, a second message appeared.<\/p>\n
Ask your wife what she left out of your background report.<\/p>\n
Priya\u2019s desk was empty when Luna and Adam returned to the office. Not simply unattended. Empty. Her framed photograph of her parents was gone. The ceramic cup that usually held … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6565,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chapter-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6572"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6572\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6602,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6572\/revisions\/6602"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6565"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thechapterstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}