All Chapters of The Algorithm of Her Heart: Chapter 51 - Chapter 58

Elena's first instinct was to call Victor immediately and demand answers. She picked up her phone three times that morning, pulling up his contact information, her finger hovering over the call button.Each time, she stopped herself.She needed to be absolutely certain before making these accusations. Victor was powerful and connected. He could deny everything, destroy evidence, make her look unstable or vindictive.Elena had learned from business negotiations that you never confronted someone without having all the facts locked down. You needed proof so solid that denial was impossible.So instead of calling, she investigated further.For the next week, Elena worked obsessively. Lily was with Marcus for those days, giving Elena uninterrupted time to dig deeper into the evidence.She started with Marcus's medical records. Getting access to those records was difficult, but Elena had authorization as his former spouse for insurance purposes during their marriage. Some records were still

Elena walked to her home office and returned with a thick folder. She set it on the coffee table between them. Marcus recognized his father's letterhead on some of the documents visible through the clear folder."I found all of this while reviewing Ashford's financial records," Elena said, sitting back down. "At first it was just unusual payments that didn't make sense. Then I traced them further and discovered everything."Marcus opened the folder with shaking hands. He saw his father's emails, the surveillance photos of Elena at MIT, the medical consultations about fertility drugs, the psychological profiles."You've known for a week?" His voice was hollow."Yes. I've been trying to process it. Trying to understand what it means." Elena's hands were folded in her lap, her posture controlled. "I was going to confront your father eventually, but I wanted to be absolutely certain first. I needed all the evidence.""He confessed tonight. He's dying and wanted to clear his conscience bef

Two weeks after her conversation with Marcus, Elena received a phone call from Victor's personal nurse. Victor Ashford wanted to see her. He was declining rapidly and didn't have much time left.Elena sat with the phone in her hand for several minutes after the call ended. She had been avoiding this confrontation, unsure if she wanted to face the man who orchestrated her entire marriage.But she realized she needed to say certain things to Victor before he died. Not for his peace, but for her own closure.She drove to the Ashford estate the next afternoon. The house looked the same from outside, grand and imposing, but inside felt different. Quieter. Darker. Like it was preparing for death.The nurse led Elena upstairs to Victor's bedroom. He was sitting up in bed, propped against pillows, looking frail and gray. The powerful businessman who had controlled so much was reduced to this fragile old man."Elena." Victor's voice was weak but steady. "Thank you for coming.""Your nurse said

Vivian knew Marcus was going to leave her. The conversation in his office made that clear. Within days, maybe weeks, she would lose everything she had worked for.Desperation made people dangerous. Vivian had nothing left to lose, which meant she was willing to try anything.She thought about her options. She couldn't make Marcus love her. She couldn't undo whatever his father told him about Elena. She couldn't compete with a memory Marcus had idealized.But she could cause problems. She could make things difficult for Elena. She could create chaos that might somehow work in her favor.The weapon she chose was Lily.Three days after Marcus told her their relationship was over, Vivian found Lily alone in the living room doing homework. Marcus was upstairs on a conference call."Lily, can we talk for a minute?" Vivian sat down on the couch beside the child.Lily looked up from her math worksheet. "Okay.""I need to tell you something important. Something about your mother." Vivian kept