Chapter 6: The Secret Adrian Never Knew
Adrian was questioned for six hours.
He denied everything.
He blamed accountants.
Advisers.
Celeste.
Even Helena.
But each denial collapsed beneath signed documents and recorded conversations.
He was released pending further investigation, but his passport was surrendered.
His remaining personal accounts were restricted.
The press waited outside.
For once, Adrian had no statement prepared.
Helena watched the news from her father’s office.
Sebastian Marlowe stood beside her.
“You could end him tonight,” he said.
“I know.”
“Then why haven’t you?”
Helena opened an old file.
Inside was a photograph taken five years earlier.
Adrian stood beside her at a hospital fundraiser, smiling as though he adored her.
“I need to know whether he ever loved me,” she said.
Sebastian frowned.
“That answer will not help you.”
“It will help me understand how I ignored everything else.”
Her father sat across from her.
“Then ask him.”
That evening, Helena arranged a meeting at an empty restaurant Marlowe International owned.
Adrian arrived alone.
He looked exhausted.
Smaller.
Human.
He sat across from her.
“What do you want to know?”
“When did you discover my family had money?”
Adrian’s eyes shifted.
Helena understood immediately.
“Before the wedding?”
He did not answer.
“How long before?”
“Three months.”
The truth entered the room like cold air.
Adrian admitted he had followed a financial trail after Helena introduced him to an investor.
He learned she was connected to Sebastian Marlowe.
He did not know the full extent of her ownership, but he knew she came from power.
“Did you marry me for access?” she asked.
“At first, I thought we could help each other.”
“At first?”
“I did love you.”
“You loved what I repaired.”
“That isn’t fair.”
“No,” Helena said quietly. “What happened to me was not fair.”
Adrian leaned forward.
“Give me another chance.”
She studied him.
“Celeste accused me of theft. Your mother planned it. You struck me in front of everyone.”
His eyes lowered.
“I lost control.”
“No. You revealed it.”
Helena stood.
“I didn’t call you here to save our marriage.”
“Then why?”
“To hear you admit that it began with a lie.”
May you like
She walked toward the exit.
“Now I can end it with the truth.”
