Chapter 3

Dad didn't answer. His expression shifted several times before he finally stormed off to his bedroom, slamming the door behind him.

From that day on, my parents gave me the silent treatment. But I no longer groveled or tried to appease them like I had always done. Instead, I went to work as usual.

At the same time, I quietly hired one of the best private investigative agencies in the industry. I had them conduct a full investigation into Caleb's and my parents' finances over the past ten years.

…

One afternoon about a week later, the lead investigator placed a thick stack of documents on my desk.

"Mr. Patterson, we've already dug thoroughly into everything. Caleb never jumped into the river to save you ten years ago.

"Back then, he'd been bullying his classmates for a long time. It eventually led to one of their accidental deaths. To protect him, your parents sent him overseas that very night.

"As for you, you were actually saved by a random passerby. He pulled you to shore, then took off after making sure you weren't in any danger.

"Your parents took advantage of the situation to tell everyone that Caleb had been swept away by the current while trying to save you. They even went as far as to legally declare him dead.

"Once the heat died down about two years ago, he finally had his identity and legal records reinstated and came back to the country."

I flipped through the documents.

Over the years, Caleb had been spending money like there was no tomorrow overseas, buying sports cars, living in sprawling mansions, and frequenting exclusive private clubs. And every last dollar of that money had come from the so-called atonement money I'd transferred to my parents.

"There's one more very important finding."

The investigator handed me a sealed manila envelope, his expression complicated.

I reached for it. The moment I laid eyes on the contents inside, my eyes grew wide.

Fate really had played a cruel joke on me.

After the investigator left, my thoughts were a complete mess. I couldn't concentrate on work at all, but I somehow managed to make it until the end of the workday before I took a cab home.

When I reached the front door, I had barely pushed it open a crack when I heard Dad's hushed voice from the living room.

"Mr. Triar, yes, this is Asher Patterson's father. Regarding what you suggested earlier… I've made my decision."

My hand froze on the door.

Mr. Triar? Wasn't that my company's biggest rival?

Mom's voice followed immediately. "Make it clear to him that we're not talking for anything less than 4.5 million dollars!

"We have all of Asher's company's core strategic files for the second half of the year. With these in hand, his company will go bankrupt sooner or later.

"And when that time comes, we can slap him with a charge for leaking trade secrets. He'll easily be looking at a few years behind bars!

"I can't believe the bastard actually tried to go against us lately. He needs to be taught a harsh lesson!"

I stood outside the door, feeling as though all the blood in my body was rushing backward. It wasn't enough that they had bled me dry for the past ten years. Now they even wanted to destroy my company, ruin my reputation, and personally send me to prison.

But now wasn't the time to expose them. I needed to keep them in check first and stop them from handing over my company's confidential information.

Taking a deep breath, I adjusted my expression and pushed the door open.

When they saw me walk in, both of them instantly fell silent. Mom, looking flustered, hurriedly hid her phone behind her back.

"When did you get home?"

Pretending not to have heard a thing, I rubbed my temples wearily.

"I just walked in. Mom, Dad, I've thought things through over these past few days. You're right. I owe my life to Caleb, and the company rightfully belongs to the family. I'll sign the share-transfer agreement in front of all our relatives at tomorrow night's family dinner."

The moment those words left my mouth, their eyes lit up.

"Good! That's my boy!" Dad said excitedly as he jumped to his feet. "I knew you were someone who knew how to show his gratitude."

I lowered my gaze slightly. From the corner of my eye, I saw him sneaking his phone out and quickly typing a message to Mr. Triar.