CHAPTER 10 THE ENEMY INSIDE THE ESCALANTE FAMILY
CHAPTER 10 THE ENEMY INSIDE THE ESCALANTE FAMILY
The morning after the press conference, I expected chaos.
I expected more questions.
More rumors.
More people trying to understand the truth.
But I did not expect the message waiting for me when I arrived at headquarters.
It was a single envelope.
No name.
No address.
No explanation.
Just my name written across the front.
MARIANA ESCALANTE
I stared at it for several seconds.
Something about it felt familiar.
Not because I recognized the handwriting.
Because I recognized the confidence behind it.
Whoever sent this wanted me to know they were not afraid.
Victor entered my office moments later.
“You received it?”
I looked at him.
“How did you know?”
He placed another envelope on my desk.
“Because I received one too.”
My expression changed.
“What does yours say?”
Victor opened it carefully.
Inside was only one sentence.
THE EMPIRE YOU THINK YOU OWN WAS NEVER YOURS.
The room became silent.
I looked at the message again.
Someone was trying to intimidate me.
But they made one mistake.
They assumed fear was something I still carried.
I placed the paper down.
“Find out who sent it.”
Victor nodded.
“We already started.”
I looked toward the window.
The city was moving below me.
People going to work.
Living normal lives.
Unaware that behind the walls of billion-dollar companies, wars were fought with documents instead of weapons.
Wars where one signature could destroy decades of power.
“Do you have any idea who could be behind this?”
Victor hesitated.
That hesitation told me everything.
“Victor.”
He sighed.
“There is one possibility.”
“Who?”
He looked at me.
“Your uncle.”
The room became colder.
My uncle.
Sebastian Escalante.
My father’s younger brother.
A man who disappeared from the family business years ago.
A man everyone believed had retired.
But I knew better.
Sebastian never walked away because he was tired.
He walked away because he was waiting.
Waiting for an opportunity.
Waiting for weakness.
Waiting for someone to make a mistake.
“Why would he do this now?”
Victor opened another file.
“Because your father named you as the primary heir.”
I looked at the documents.
“And Sebastian expected to inherit.”
“Yes.”
The truth settled slowly.
All my life, I knew my family had conflicts.
Every powerful family did.
But I never imagined someone would challenge me openly.
Not after everything I had already survived.
My husband.
His mistress.
His family.
And now—
My own blood.
Victor continued.
“There is more.”
I looked up.
“What?”
“Sebastian has been meeting with former Cole executives.”
My eyes narrowed.
“Andrew’s people?”
“Yes.”
That was interesting.
Because enemies rarely worked together unless they had the same goal.
“What do they want?”
Victor answered quietly.
“To remove you.”
I smiled.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was predictable.
For years, people thought removing me would be easy.
They saw my silence as weakness.
They saw my patience as surrender.
They were about to make the same mistake again.
Meanwhile, Andrew was experiencing something completely different.
After losing control of his company, his life became a series of closed doors.
People who once called him daily stopped answering.
Friends suddenly became busy.
Business partners suddenly forgot his name.
The same people who surrounded him when he had power disappeared when he needed them.
He sat alone in a small private office he rented after leaving the mansion.
No assistants.
No luxury furniture.
No employees waiting for instructions.
Just him.
For the first time in years, Andrew had nothing to hide behind.
A knock came at the door.
He looked up.
“Come in.”
A former executive entered.
James Carter.
Someone who worked with Andrew for years.
Andrew stood.
“James.”
The man looked uncomfortable.
“I need to talk to you.”
Andrew motioned toward the chair.
“Sit.”
James remained standing.
“I know who is working against Mariana.”
Andrew frowned.
“What?”
James lowered his voice.
“Sebastian Escalante.”
Andrew froze.
“Her uncle?”
“Yes.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
James looked away.
“Because I made mistakes too.”
Andrew studied him.
“What kind of mistakes?”
James sighed.
“We all believed you built everything.”
“We were wrong.”
The honesty surprised Andrew.
“So what?”
James looked at him.
“Maybe this is your chance to fix something.”
Andrew laughed quietly.
“Fix something?”
“You think Mariana will forgive me?”
James did not answer.
Because the truth was obvious.
Maybe she would not.
But that did not mean Andrew could continue being the same person.
That evening, I received another message.
This time, it was not anonymous.
It came from Andrew.
We need to talk.
I stared at the screen.
Four years ago, I would have answered immediately.
Now, I waited.
Then another message appeared.
It’s about Sebastian.
That got my attention.
I looked at Victor.
“Andrew knows.”
Victor looked surprised.
“How?”
“I don’t know.”
I read the message again.
Part of me wanted to ignore him.
After everything he did.
After every insult.
Every betrayal.
Every moment he made me feel worthless.
But another part of me understood something.
Andrew was no longer the only threat.
Sebastian was different.
Andrew hurt me because of his arrogance.
Sebastian wanted power.
And people who wanted power were often more dangerous than people driven by pride.
I replied.
Tomorrow.
Victor looked at me.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
I looked at the city outside.
“Because this is no longer just about Andrew.”
A pause.
“It is about protecting everything my family built.”
The next morning, Andrew arrived at a quiet café outside the city.
He looked different.
Older.
More tired.
Less certain.
When he saw me walk in, he stood.
But this time—
He did not act like a king.
He acted like a man who finally understood his position.
“Mariana.”
I sat down.
“What do you know about Sebastian?”
Andrew took a deep breath.
Then he said something that changed everything.
“He was never trying to destroy your company.”
I looked at him.
“Then what is he trying to do?”
Andrew stared at me.
“He wants something much bigger.”
“What?”
His answer made my entire body go still.
“He wants the Escalante empire.”
The café suddenly felt silent.
Because I finally understood.
Andrew had been a battle I survived.
Brenda had been a betrayal I exposed.
But Sebastian…
May you like
Sebastian was a war that had been waiting for me my entire life.
And now, the real fight was beginning.
