CHAPTER 10 — THE MAN BEHIND THE MERIDIAN CIRCLE
The screen remained black.
But his presence filled the room.
A man who had been dead for decades.
A man whose name had been buried.
A man whose actions had shaped every tragedy in my life.
My grandfather.
The person who started everything.
Nobody spoke.
Not even Charles.
For the first time, the billionaire who believed he controlled the world looked completely powerless.
Because there was someone above him.
Someone he feared.
Adrian stared at the blank screen.
His face had lost all color.
"How?"
The question escaped him.
Not to anyone in the room.
To himself.
Alexander looked equally shaken.
"That is impossible."
Victoria, however...
Was smiling.
Not because she was happy.
Because she finally understood.
"I knew it."
Everyone turned toward her.
Adrian narrowed his eyes.
"You knew?"
Victoria slowly looked at the screen.
"Not exactly."
A pause.
"But I knew he wasn't gone."
My heart tightened.
Another secret.
Another person who knew something.
I looked around the room.
At all of them.
"My entire life..."
My voice was quiet.
"Everyone knew something."
Nobody answered.
"I was the only person who didn't."
The words hurt more because they were true.
Adrian stepped closer.
"Elizabeth."
I looked at him.
"I know you are angry."
"Angry?"
I laughed softly.
"No."
I shook my head.
"I'm beyond angry."
A pause.
"I'm tired."
The room became silent.
"I'm tired of discovering that my life was a story everyone else wrote."
My eyes moved from Adrian to Alexander.
"Everyone decided what I could handle."
"What I should know."
"Who I should trust."
"But nobody asked me."
Nobody had an answer.
Because there wasn't one.
The screen suddenly activated again.
The old man's face appeared.
He looked nothing like the monster I expected.
That was the terrifying part.
He looked calm.
Intelligent.
Almost kind.
A grandfather.
The kind of man people would trust.
"My granddaughter."
The words made my skin crawl.
"I imagine you have many questions."
I stared at him.
"Who are you?"
He smiled.
"You know my name."
"No."
My voice hardened.
"I know the name people gave you."
A pause.
"But I don't know the man."
The old man studied me.
Then smiled.
"You have your mother's courage."
I felt cold.
"Don't mention her."
His expression changed slightly.
"You loved her."
"You killed her."
Silence.
For the first time...
The old man's smile disappeared.
"That is what they told you?"
I froze.
"What?"
He leaned closer.
"Your family has spent thirty years convincing you that I am the villain."
My fingers tightened.
"Are you saying you're not?"
"I'm saying..."
A pause.
"Truth is rarely simple."
I almost laughed.
"That's what every liar says."
The old man looked at Alexander.
"She has your stubbornness."
Alexander said nothing.
The old man looked back at me.
"Elizabeth, you believe you are fighting for justice."
"I am."
"No."
His answer was calm.
"You are fighting because you are hurt."
The words hit me.
Because part of me hated that they were true.
"You lost your husband."
"You lost your mother."
"You lost the father you thought you knew."
He paused.
"You lost your entire identity."
I said nothing.
"That pain makes people easy to control."
My eyes narrowed.
"Are you trying to control me?"
A small smile.
"Everyone is."
That answer surprised me.
Because it was honest.
"I am."
A pause.
"Adrian is."
"Alexander is."
"Charles is."
"Even Nathan."
My heart tightened.
"And you?"
The old man looked at me.
"I am the only one who admits it."
The screen changed.
A document appeared.
A birth certificate.
My name.
Elizabeth Cross.
But below it...
A second name.
A name I had never seen.
Elizabeth Vale Cross.
I stared.
"What is that?"
Alexander looked away.
Adrian closed his eyes.
Victoria whispered:
"No."
I turned.
"What?"
Nobody spoke.
I looked at the screen.
"Explain."
The old man smiled.
"Your mother knew."
"Knew what?"
"That your bloodline came from both sides."
I frowned.
"What does that mean?"
He answered:
"You are not only a Cross."
A pause.
"You are also a Vale."
My heart stopped.
I looked at Alexander.
"What?"
He couldn't look at me.
"Your grandfather was my father."
I stared.
Impossible.
The old man continued.
"Alexander Vale is not just your guardian."
"He is your biological uncle."
The room exploded into silence.
I looked at Alexander.
My entire understanding of my family shattered again.
"No."
Alexander finally spoke.
"Elizabeth..."
"Is this true?"
He didn't answer.
I didn't need him to.
The pain on his face was enough.
The old man continued:
"Your mother discovered the truth."
"She learned that the Cross and Vale families were connected."
"She learned that the Meridian Circle existed to protect that bloodline."
I shook my head.
"This makes no sense."
The old man smiled.
"Because you still think this is about families."
A pause.
"It's about inheritance."
"Power."
"Control."
He leaned forward.
"And you are the final heir."
Charles suddenly interrupted.
"You."
Everyone looked at him.
For the first time...
Charles sounded afraid.
"You were supposed to be gone."
The old man looked amused.
"Charles Ashford."
"You always wanted to replace me."
Charles's face changed.
Replace him.
That meant...
Charles wasn't the leader.
He was only another piece.
The old man continued:
"You used Nathan."
"You used the company."
"You attempted to access the archive."
A pause.
"You failed."
Charles clenched his fists.
"You think you've won?"
The old man smiled.
"No."
"I think Elizabeth has finally arrived."
Everyone looked at me.
I hated that.
Because once again...
The entire world was looking at me like I was something important.
Something valuable.
Something dangerous.
I wasn't sure if I wanted to be any of those things.
The old man continued:
"Elizabeth."
"Come to me."
"No."
My answer was immediate.
The old man smiled.
"Good."
Everyone looked surprised.
"What?"
"You finally made your first independent decision."
I froze.
"What are you talking about?"
"You refused."
A pause.
"Not because Alexander told you."
"Not because Adrian told you."
"Not because I demanded it."
"You chose."
The old man's expression became serious.
"That is exactly why your mother died protecting you."
The screen suddenly showed a location.
Coordinates.
A hidden island.
And one final message.
COME ALONE.
Adrian stepped forward.
"Absolutely not."
Alexander agreed.
"No."
Victoria shook her head.
"It's a trap."
I looked at the location.
Then at all of them.
For once...
Nobody was telling me what to do.
They were waiting.
My choice.
I picked up the silver bird necklace.
The key.
The symbol of everything hidden from me.
"I'll go."
Everyone reacted.
"No."
"Elizabeth."
"Don't."
I raised my hand.
Silence.
"I spent thirty years being protected."
A pause.
"Thirty years being lied to."
I looked at the screen.
"Now I need answers."
Adrian stepped closer.
"You don't know what you're walking into."
I looked at him.
"Neither did you when you fought for me."
That stopped him.
Because it was true.
The old man smiled.
"Good."
The screen went black.
Then one final message appeared.
BRING THE TRUTH.
I stared at those words.
Because suddenly I understood.
This wasn't an invitation.
It was a test.
And whoever my grandfather really was...
He wanted to know one thing.
Not whether I was powerful.
Not whether I was worthy.
May you like
But whether I was willing to destroy everything...
To discover the truth.
