Chapter 8 - THE TRUTH ADRIAN COULDN'T BUY
Adrian listened to the recording without moving.
We were sitting in Elena's office.
He had agreed to come alone.
No guards.
No assistants.
No lawyers from Moretti Holdings.
Just Adrian.
And the truth.
When his father's voice filled the room, his face changed.
I watched him.
The man who could control half of Chicago suddenly looked like a boy hearing something terrible about his family.
When the recording ended, he stared at the table.
For a long time, nobody spoke.
Then Adrian whispered, “My father.”
I said nothing.
He looked at Elena.
“Is it authentic?”
“We're arranging forensic verification.”
He nodded slowly.
Then looked at me.
“Evelyn.”
I crossed my arms.
“Don't.”
He stopped.
I took a breath.
“I don't need you to apologize for something your father may have done.”
His eyes filled.
“But I need you to stop hiding things.”
He nodded.
“Everything I know is yours.”
I studied him.
“Then start talking.”
Adrian told us about the old financial investigation.
His father had been moving money through transportation contracts.
Several accountants discovered discrepancies.
One of them was my father.
Carlo became paranoid.
He suspected someone was cooperating with federal investigators.
Victor Sloane argued that the family should resolve the matter legally.
Carlo refused.
Then Victor disappeared.
And my father died.
Adrian had been twenty-three.
He knew there were problems.
He knew his father was angry.
But he hadn't known the details.
Or so he claimed.
Elena asked careful questions.
Dates.
Names.
Documents.
Adrian answered.
Sometimes he admitted he didn't remember.
Sometimes he said he needed to check records.
But he didn't try to control the conversation.
That mattered.
After the meeting, Adrian followed me into the hallway.
“Evelyn.”
I stopped.
He looked exhausted.
“I don't know how to make this right.”
I studied him.
“You can't.”
His face tightened.
“You can help uncover the truth.”
He nodded.
“I will.”
“And you can stop treating every problem like something money can solve.”
He looked down.
“I know.”
I took a breath.
“Then do that.”
Three days later, Moretti Holdings released a public statement.
The company announced an independent review of historical financial transactions.
Adrian provided documents to investigators.
He suspended executives connected to the old operations.
And he publicly acknowledged that his father's legacy required scrutiny.
The reaction was immediate.
Investors panicked.
Former associates threatened him.
Several powerful men demanded he stop cooperating.
Adrian refused.
For the first time, he was choosing truth over family reputation.
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But that choice came with consequences.
And someone was preparing to make him pay.
