hapter 7: The Woman Behind the Mask
hapter 7: The Woman Behind the Mask
The old Ashford estate sat at the edge of the city, hidden behind tall iron gates and endless rows of black trees.
It was the kind of place designed to make people feel small.
Cold.
Unwelcome.
A place where powerful people made decisions that changed other people’s lives.
At exactly 11:00 PM, I stepped out of the car.
No security team.
No father.
No backup.
Just me.
My father hated the idea.
He called it reckless.
Maybe he was right.
But there was something Victoria didn’t understand.
For years, I survived by being underestimated.
People saw my silence and thought I was weak.
They saw my patience and thought I was afraid.
Nathan made the same mistake.
And now Victoria was making it too.
The front doors opened before I reached them.
A woman stood inside.
Victoria Ashford.
She looked exactly like she did on television.
Perfect.
Calm.
Untouchable.
She wore a dark suit with simple jewelry, nothing flashy.
She didn’t need to show wealth.
She carried herself like someone who already owned everything in the room.
“Evelyn.”
Her voice was polite.
Almost friendly.
I walked inside.
“You wanted to talk.”
She smiled.
“Straight to the point.”
“Something we have in common.”
I looked around.
The house was beautiful.
But unlike Blackthorn Manor, this place didn’t feel like a home.
It felt like a headquarters.
A place where plans were created.
A place where people were moved like pieces on a chessboard.
Victoria noticed me looking around.
“Interesting, isn’t it?”
“What?”
“How much people reveal without realizing it.”
I looked at her.
“You mean like Nathan?”
A small smile appeared.
“Yes.”
She poured herself a drink.
“Your husband was never difficult to understand.”
“He wanted approval.”
“Power.”
“Recognition.”
I said nothing.
Because hearing her describe Nathan like an object made my stomach turn.
“You used him.”
Victoria didn’t deny it.
“I guided him.”
“That’s a nicer word for manipulation.”
She smiled.
“Everyone manipulates.”
“Some people are just better at hiding it.”
I studied her.
“Why me?”
That question made her pause.
Not long.
But long enough.
“Because you were the key.”
“To what?”
She walked toward the large window overlooking the property.
“Your father built an empire by collecting information.”
“He knew every weakness.”
“Every secret.”
“Every person’s pressure point.”
She turned back toward me.
“But he made one mistake.”
“What?”
“He believed love would make him blind.”
I frowned.
“What are you talking about?”
Victoria smiled.
“He protected you.”
“He hid your identity.”
“He kept you away from his world.”
“And then he gave you to Nathan.”
Her words felt like a knife.
“He thought he was protecting you from people like me.”
She stepped closer.
“But he accidentally placed you directly in my hands.”
I felt anger rising.
“You destroyed my life.”
“No.”
Her answer was immediate.
“I exposed your life.”
I stared at her.
“You call what Nathan did exposure?”
“He was always that person.”
“He just needed the right circumstances to reveal himself.”
I hated that part of me understood what she meant.
Because she was right about one thing.
Nathan had chosen his actions.
Victoria had influenced him.
But he had still made every decision.
“You don’t feel guilty.”
It wasn’t a question.
Victoria looked at me.
“No.”
The honesty surprised me.
“Why?”
“Because guilt is something people feel when they believe they did something wrong.”
She looked out the window.
“I don’t.”
I watched her carefully.
“You really believe you’re the hero?”
“No.”
She smiled.
“I believe I’m the survivor.”
The answer was colder than I expected.
“Everyone thinks powerful people are born powerful.”
She walked back to the table.
“They’re wrong.”
“Power belongs to the person willing to do what others refuse to do.”
I shook my head.
“You destroyed innocent people.”
“Businesses.”
“Families.”
Victoria’s expression didn’t change.
“Collateral damage.”
The words made my blood run cold.
“You’re exactly like Nathan.”
That was the first time her expression changed.
Only slightly.
But enough.
“I am nothing like Nathan.”
“You’re right.”
I looked at her.
“He wanted people to love him.”
“He needed applause.”
“You don’t.”
A silence followed.
Then Victoria smiled.
“Maybe you understand me better than you think.”
I ignored the comment.
“What do you want from me?”
She reached into a folder and placed several documents on the table.
I opened the first page.
My heart stopped.
It was a transfer agreement.
Between Vale International Holdings...
And Ashford Global Logistics.
But something was wrong.
The signature at the bottom caught my attention.
My own name.
My signature.
I looked up.
“I never signed this.”
Victoria leaned back.
“I know.”
My hands tightened around the document.
“Then why does it exist?”
“Because someone forged your identity.”
“Who?”
Victoria looked directly at me.
And the answer shocked me.
“Your father.”
The room went silent.
I stared at her.
“That’s impossible.”
“Is it?”
She pushed another document toward me.
“Ask him why he created a company in your name five years ago.”
My breathing slowed.
Because suddenly...
The question wasn’t whether Victoria was lying.
The question was:
Why did my father never tell me?
Victoria stood.
“You came here looking for answers.”
She walked toward the door.
“But now you have better questions.”
I didn’t move.
“Why are you telling me this?”
She stopped.
Then looked back.
“Because soon, Evelyn, you will have to choose.”
“Choose what?”
Her eyes hardened.
“Your father.”
“Or the truth.”
The door closed behind her.
I stood alone in the mansion.
Holding documents that could destroy the only person I had trusted my entire life.
And for the first time...
May you like
I wondered if Nathan wasn’t the only person who had been hiding something from me.
To be continued...
