PART 4
The phone slipped slightly in Sophia's hand.
For a few seconds, nobody moved.
Nobody breathed.
The children were still standing nearby, unaware that the entire world of the adults around them had just shifted.
But I saw it.
I saw the fear in Sophia's eyes.
Not the fear of Victor Hale.
Something else.
The fear of me knowing the truth.
"Sophia."
My voice was quiet.
Almost too quiet.
"What is he talking about?"
She looked at me.
Her lips parted.
But no words came out.
That was the moment I knew.
There was something she had never told me.
Something bigger than the children.
Bigger than the lies.
Bigger than four years of silence.
"Liam, Emma, Noah," Daniel said gently.
"Why don't you go to the living room for a little while?"
The children looked confused.
"But—"
"Please."
Daniel's voice was soft.
The children slowly walked away.
But before leaving, Liam looked back at me.
Those familiar eyes.
My eyes.
And for some reason, that made the guilt inside me hurt even more.
When the door closed, I turned back to Sophia.
"Tell me."
She looked down.
"Lucas..."
"No."
I shook my head.
"Not this time."
My voice cracked.
"I spent four years believing I walked away from a mistake."
I stepped closer.
"Then I found out I had children."
Another step.
"Then I found out I had another child who was taken from you."
I stared at her.
"And now Victor says the night we met wasn't what I thought."
A long silence followed.
Finally, Sophia whispered:
"Because it wasn't."
The words felt like a punch.
"What does that mean?"
She sat down slowly.
For the first time, she looked exhausted.
Not like the powerful executive who had entered my boardroom.
Not like the woman who had survived everything alone.
Just Sophia.
The woman I left behind.
"That night at the hotel..."
She paused.
"I didn't meet you by accident."
My heart stopped.
"What?"
She looked at me.
"I was sent there."
The room became unbearably quiet.
"You were part of Victor's plan?"
Her eyes filled with tears.
"No."
She shook her head quickly.
"Not the way you think."
"Then explain."
Sophia took a deep breath.
"I worked for Victor's company four years ago."
The revelation stunned me.
"What?"
"I was his financial analyst."
I stared at her.
"You never told me."
"Because I was ashamed."
Her voice trembled.
"Victor recruited me because I was good at my job. I was young, ambitious, and I believed I could change the world."
She laughed bitterly.
"I didn't know I was working for a man who destroyed people for entertainment."
I listened silently.
"Victor discovered you were about to expose one of his illegal deals," she continued.
My eyes narrowed.
"What deal?"
"The one involving Hart Group."
I remembered.
Four years ago, I had been investigating missing funds connected to several companies owned by Victor.
Someone inside his organization had been secretly sending me information.
But the source disappeared.
I never found out who it was.
Until now.
"It was you."
Sophia nodded.
"I was the anonymous source."
My entire body froze.
"You helped me?"
"Yes."
"Then why the hotel?"
Her eyes lowered.
"Because Victor found out."
The pieces started connecting.
"He knew I was helping you."
Sophia nodded.
"He threatened me."
Her hands trembled.
"He told me if I didn't cooperate, he would destroy my career, my family, everything."
I clenched my jaw.
"So he forced you into that room."
"No."
She looked at me.
"He forced you."
A cold feeling spread through me.
"What?"
"He drugged you because he wanted to create a scandal."
She swallowed.
"But he didn't expect me to interfere."
"Interfere?"
Sophia looked away.
"I was supposed to leave after taking pictures that would ruin you."
My stomach turned.
"But when I saw you..."
Her voice became softer.
"You weren't the arrogant CEO everyone described."
She smiled sadly.
"You were scared."
I remembered that night.
Fragments.
A woman's voice.
A hand holding mine.
Someone telling me everything would be okay.
"You were having a panic attack," Sophia whispered.
"I stayed because I couldn't leave you like that."
My heart tightened.
"You saved me."
She nodded.
"And then everything changed."
"Because we slept together."
She looked down.
"Yes."
A painful silence filled the room.
"Then why did you leave the note?"
Her eyes closed.
"Because when you woke up, you looked at me like you hated me."
I froze.
"I didn't."
"You did."
Her voice broke.
"You asked me who I was."
I couldn't remember.
The drugs.
The confusion.
The fear.
"I thought you regretted everything."
She wiped away a tear.
"So I left before you could hurt me."
I stood there speechless.
All these years...
I had believed she abandoned me.
But she thought I rejected her.
We had both been trapped by Victor's plan.
But then I remembered something.
"The fourth child."
Sophia became silent.
My heart started racing.
"What happened after that night?"
She looked terrified.
"Lucas..."
"Tell me."
She took a shaky breath.
"After I found out I was pregnant, Victor found out too."
"And?"
"He wanted the babies."
My blood ran cold.
"Why?"
"Because he knew they were your children."
The room spun.
"He wanted leverage against you."
Sophia looked toward the hallway where our children were playing.
"The triplets were protected because I managed to hide them."
She looked at me.
"But Lily..."
Her voice broke.
"I couldn't protect her."
I felt anger rise inside me.
"Where did he take her?"
Before Sophia could answer...
The front door suddenly opened.
Everyone turned.
A man stood there.
Not Daniel.
Not a stranger.
Someone I recognized immediately.
My former head of security.
The man who disappeared four years ago.
The man I thought betrayed me.
"Lucas."
His face was pale.
"I finally found you."
I stared at him.
"What are you doing here?"
He looked at Sophia.
Then at me.
And said the words that made my blood freeze:
"Because Victor Hale doesn't have Lily."
A pause.
"He never did."
Nobody spoke.
The man stepped inside.
"Your daughter is alive."
My heart stopped.
"Where is she?"
He looked at me with fear in his eyes.
"She's been hidden from everyone."
Another pause.
"Even from Victor."
I stepped forward.
"Who has her?"
The man looked directly at Sophia.
And whispered:
"The person who took Lily..."
"Is someone you trust."
