Chapter 4 - The Enemy Hidden Inside the Family
Marcus Vale arrived at the Moretti headquarters at noon.
He walked in wearing the same confident expression he always wore.
The expression of a man who believed he was untouchable.
Adrian sat behind his desk.
Sofia sat beside him.
Not behind.
Not hidden.
Beside him.
Marcus noticed.
“You brought Sofia into this meeting?”
Adrian looked at him coldly.
“She was always supposed to be here.”
Marcus smiled.
“Adrian, we both know Sofia is emotional about the theater.”
Sofia immediately moved her hands.
Lily translated.
“She says she is not emotional. She is informed.”
Marcus ignored her.
That was his mistake.
Adrian noticed.
“I asked you a question.”
Marcus looked at him.
“I made decisions that protected the foundation.”
“Without her approval.”
“She would have approved eventually.”
The room became silent.
Adrian slowly stood.
“No.”
Marcus stopped.
“You don't get to decide what my sister would do.”
Marcus's confidence weakened slightly.
“This is business.”
Adrian walked around the desk.
“No.”
His voice remained calm.
“That is exactly what you wanted everyone to believe.”
He placed a file on the table.
Inside were payment records.
The missing interpreter.
The altered documents.
The deleted messages.
Marcus looked at the papers.
Then laughed.
“You think a waitress finding a few mistakes means you understand everything?”
Lily remained silent.
Adrian looked at Marcus.
“She didn't find mistakes.”
He pointed toward Sofia.
“She noticed my sister.”
That sentence changed the room.
Because Marcus understood something.
Adrian was not angry because of money.
He was angry because someone had made Sofia feel invisible.
Marcus leaned forward.
“You are choosing a stranger over family?”
Adrian looked at him.
“No.”
He looked at Sofia.
“I am choosing my family over someone pretending to be it.”
---
Marcus was removed from the foundation board that afternoon.
The theater sale was immediately suspended.
But the damage remained.
Sofia sat alone inside the old Moretti Theater that evening.
The building was worn.
The seats were old.
The paint was fading.
But she loved it.
Adrian found her there.
He sat beside her.
For several minutes, neither spoke.
Finally, Sofia signed.
You were scared.
Adrian nodded.
“Yes.”
She looked surprised.
He continued.
“I was scared the world would hurt you.”
Sofia replied.
So you built a wall.
Adrian looked around the empty theater.
“Yes.”
She signed:
Walls keep people out too.
Adrian had no answer.
May you like
Because once again, his sister was right.
---
