Chapter 133 #133
Chapter 133
~Shailyn's POV~
I know who did this.
My blood turned to ice.
Gramps was staring directly at me.
The room went silent. Every eye following his gaze.
My heart pounded so hard I was sure everyone could hear it.
Stay calm. Don't react. You're innocent. You know nothing.
I met his eyes. Held his stare.
Waiting.
"It's an enemy," Gramps said finally, breaking eye contact with me. "From a rival company."
Relief flooded through me so fast I almost gasped.
"What?" Tyler turned to him. "How do you know?"
"Because this is too sophisticated. Too targeted. Someone who knows our systems intimately."
"That could be anyone—"
"No. It couldn't." Gramps walked forward slightly. "This required admin-level access. Knowledge of our server architecture. And the skill to execute a complete wipe without triggering security protocols."
"So you're saying—"
"I'm saying this is corporate espionage. And I have a very good idea who's behind it."
"Who?"
"Romano. From TechVision."
Tyler's eyes widened. "Romano? You're certain?"
"He's been trying to acquire us for years. This is exactly his style. Destroy our data, tank our value, then swoop in with a buyout offer."
"That bastard—"
"Which is why we need to act quickly." Gramps looked around the room. "I want a full security audit. Change every password. Every access code. Lock down the servers completely."
"Yes, sir," one of the tech leads said.
"And Tyler, I'll handle Romano personally. I have connections. People who owe me favors. We'll recover what we can and make sure he pays for this."
Tyler nodded slowly. "Alright. Do it."
Gramps turned to Dante. "And you be more careful with your credentials. This happened because of a security lapse."
"Yes, sir. I'm sorry."
"Sorry doesn't restore our data. Just make sure it doesn't happen again."
"It won't."
Gramps looked at me one more time.
Just for a second.
Something flickered in his eyes. Something knowing.
Then he walked toward the door. "I'll be in touch. Everyone back to work."
The room slowly emptied.
Tyler stayed, staring at the table.
Dante approached him. "Dad—"
"Not now."
"But I need to explain—"
"I said not now!"
Dante flinched and walked out.
I stood to leave.
"Shailyn."
I froze. "Yes, Mr. Belmar?"
Tyler looked up at me. "You're a smart woman. Smarter than most people give you credit for."
"Thank you, sir."
"Do you have any idea who might have done this?"
"No, sir. I'm as shocked as everyone else."
He studied me for a long moment. "Of course you are. You may go."
I walked out, keeping my pace steady. Controlled.
Don't run. Don't look suspicious.
Just walk.
\---
I made it to my office and closed the door.
My hands were shaking.
That was too close. Way too close.
Gramps knew. Or at least suspected.
But he'd covered for me. Why?
My phone buzzed.
Hannah: Are you okay? I heard there was an emergency meeting.
Me: I'm fine. Tell you later.
Hannah: Okay. Be careful.
I put my phone away and tried to focus on work.
But my mind kept replaying that moment.
Gramps staring at me. Those knowing eyes.
He definitely suspected something.
\---
The rest of the day dragged.
People whispered in the hallways. Speculation about who was responsible. Theories about rival companies.
Dante was in damage control mode, calling clients, reassuring investors.
Tyler locked himself in his office.
And I noticed something strange.
He was distraught. More than he should be.
Not just angry about the data loss. But genuinely scared.
I passed by his office around four PM and heard him on the phone.
"I don't care what it costs. I need that data recovered."
Pause.
"All of it. Especially the offshore accounts. Those records can't be public."
Offshore accounts?
"I'm sending you the server details now. Work around the clock if you have to."
Another pause.
"No. No one else knows about this. Keep it that way."
He hung up.
I moved quickly past his door before he could see me.
Offshore accounts. Secret recovery efforts.
What was Tyler hiding?
\---
I left the office before everyone else.
Claimed I was tired. Needed to rest. The pregnancy.
Dante barely noticed. Too stressed about the data loss.
Perfect.
I drove home, my mind racing.
Tyler's reaction didn't make sense. Yes, losing company data was bad. But the way he'd panicked that was personal.
What was in those files that scared him so much?
I pulled into the estate and parked.
The house was empty. Quiet.
Dante was still at the office. Dwayne was probably at the hospital or with Luke.
Good.
I needed privacy for what I was about to do.
I went straight to my room, pulled out my laptop, and connected to the secure server where I'd backed up everything.
The complete company database. Every file. Every record.
All safely stored and organized.
I started searching.
Financial records first. Standard stuff. Quarterly reports. Tax filings.
Then I found the subfolder.
Offshore Accounts - Confidential.
My cursor hovered over it.
This was what Tyler was desperate to recover.
I clicked.
The folder opened.
Inside were transaction records. Dozens of them. Spanning years.
Millions of dollars moving through shell companies. Cayman Islands. Switzerland. Luxembourg.
Money laundering? Tax evasion?
I kept scrolling.
Then I saw it.
A payment. Made twenty-eight years ago.
To someone named Ivanov.
The memo line read: "Final Payment."
My heart stopped.
I clicked the file. Read the details.
$500,000. Transferred two days after my father died.
Two days after I was born.
My hands started shaking.
There was another file attached. A scanned document.
I opened it.
A contract. Between Tyler Belmar and Ivanov.
For services rendered.
Services rendered.
I kept reading.
The room spun.
Tears blurred my vision.
There it was. In black and white.
Proof.
Tyler had paid someone to kill my father.
Not just killed him in anger. Not an accident or a fight.
He'd hired a professional. Planned it. Paid for it.
Murder for hire.
My father. My brilliant, loving father who I never got to know.
Murdered. For money. For a company.
The tears came harder now. Hot. Angry.
I pressed my hand to my mouth to muffle the sob.
All these years. All this time.
And here was the proof.
Tyler Belmar was a murderer.
And he was going to pay.
I was going to make sure of it.
But then I saw something else.
And suddenly, I understood why Tyler was so desperate to recover this data.
Because it proved everything.
The murder. The coverup. The attempted hit on my mother.
All of it.
I saved the files to a separate encrypted drive.
Three copies. Three different locations.
This evidence was going to bring down the entire Belmar family.
Starting with Tyler.
My phone buzzed.
Dwayne: Home soon. Are you okay?
I wiped my tears and typed back.
Me: We need to talk. I found something.
Dwayne: What?
Me: Proof. Of everything.
A pause. Then:
Dwayne: I'm on my way.
I stared at the screen.
At my father's name.
At the evidence of their destruction.
"I'm going to destroy them," I whispered. "Every single one of them."
And I meant it.