Chapter 10 - The Wedding That Never HappenedVictor Lang moved quickly.
Within forty-eight hours, Robert Carter received another legal notice.
Then another.
His old company was accused of financial misconduct.
His retirement account was threatened.
His house was placed under preliminary legal review.
It was intimidation disguised as paperwork.
Emily was furious.
Julian was furious too.
But Robert remained strangely calm.
“Don't let them make you reckless.”
Emily stared at him.
“They're trying to take your home.”
“They haven't.”
“They will.”
Robert smiled.
“Your mother and I survived worse.”
Linda squeezed his hand.
“We'll survive this too.”
Then Julian arrived.
He placed a folder on the table.
“I found something.”
Emily opened it.
Inside were internal Maro corporate records.
Emails.
Payments.
Meeting schedules.
Victor Lang had been moving money for years.
But there was more.
The money eventually went to a private account controlled by Phipe Maro.
Emily looked up.
“Your father knew.”
Julian nodded.
“I'm afraid so.”
Robert stared at the documents.
“This is enough to expose them.”
Julian shook his head.
“Not yet.”
“Why?”
“Because most of it can be dismissed as old corporate records.”
Emily understood.
“We need proof that connects Victor directly to the accident.”
Julian nodded.
“And we need it before he knows we're looking.”
The next day, they arranged a meeting.
Emily sent Victor an anonymous message claiming that Daniel Mercer was ready to testify.
Victor responded within eleven minutes.
Where?
They gave him a fake location.
But Victor didn't go.
Instead, he called someone.
A recording captured the conversation.
His voice was unmistakable.
“Mercer is talking.”
A second voice answered.
Phipe.
“What does he want?”
“He wants protection.”
“Then buy him.”
“He won't take money.”
“Then frighten him.”
Emily listened to the recording three times.
Julian sat beside her.
His face was devastated.
“My father.”
Emily looked at him.
“You need to decide something.”
“What?”
“Whether you're going to protect him.”
Julian stared at the screen.
“No.”
He took a breath.
“I'm protecting you.”
Emily looked away.
“Don't do this for me.”
“I am not.”
He looked directly at her.
“I'm doing it because I should have done it months ago.”
That night, Julian called his father.
“I have the recordings.”
Silence.
Then Phipe asked:
“What do you want?”
“The truth.”
“You'll destroy this family.”
“No.”
Julian's voice cracked.
“You destroyed it when you taught me that money mattered more than people.”
Phipe hung up.
Twenty minutes later, Julian received a message.
Your mother wants to see you. Alone.
Julian went.
Isabelle was waiting.
She looked exhausted.
“You need to leave the country,” she whispered.
“Why?”
“Your father has lost control.”
“Where is he?”
“I don't know.”
She handed Julian a key.
“There's a safe deposit box in Geneva.”
“What is inside?”
“Everything.”
Julian stared at her.
“Why are you helping me?”
Tears appeared in her eyes.
“Because I watched you become a man I barely recognized.”
May you like
She looked down.
“And I finally realized I was part of the reason.”
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