Tell her who her real father is.
The words echoed through the ruined suite like a death sentence.
Everything stopped.
The gunmen.
The screaming.
The city outside.
Even my own heartbeat.
I stared at Chairman Seo while my mind violently searched for another explanation.
Another meaning.
Another reality.
But Daniel’s expression destroyed all hope instantly.
Because he looked terrified.
Not confused.
Not shocked.
Terrified.
Oh my God.
I slowly turned toward him.
“No.”
My voice barely existed.
Daniel stepped closer immediately.
“Sophia—”
“No.”
Louder this time.
Sharper.
Because if he spoke, then this became real.
And I wasn’t ready for that.
Chairman Seo adjusted his cufflinks calmly while shattered glass glittered across the floor around him.
Like this entire nightmare bored him already.
“Your mother made many mistakes,” he said quietly.
“But hiding the truth from you was probably the cruelest.”
My stomach twisted violently.
Evelyn looked pale behind us.
Interesting.
She knew too.
Of course she did.
Everyone knew except me.
Again.
Always me.
I looked directly at Daniel.
“Tell me he’s lying.”
Silence.
That silence destroyed something inside me permanently.
Tears burned instantly behind my eyes.
No.
No, no, no.
Daniel’s voice came out rough now.
“I didn’t know at first.”
At first.
The words hit like poison.
Which meant:
eventually he did know.
“How long?”
Daniel swallowed hard.
“About a year.”
A year.
For one entire year…
he knew something this enormous and still looked me in the eyes every day pretending our relationship existed normally.
I laughed softly under my breath.
Broken.
Disbelieving.
“Unbelievable.”
Chairman Seo watched us carefully.
Observing.
Calculating.
Like human suffering was just another negotiation.
Then finally he said it.
The sentence that shattered everything completely.
“Richard Hart is your biological father.”
The room disappeared around me.
I genuinely stopped breathing.
Richard Hart.
Richard Hart.
The man who destroyed my life.
The man connected to my mother’s death.
The man who manipulated Daniel.
The man I hated.
My father.
“No.”
The word came out instantly.
Instinctively.
Because my body rejected the truth before my mind could process it.
Daniel stepped toward me again carefully.
“Sophia—”
I backed away immediately.
“Don’t touch me.”
Pain crossed his face instantly.
Good.
I wanted him hurt now.
I wanted all of them hurt.
Chairman Seo continued calmly:
“Your mother worked closely with Richard for years.”
My stomach twisted.
“She became a liability after discovering the Seoul operations.”
Operations.
Always operations.
Like murder was just paperwork to these people.
Chairman Seo’s eyes shifted toward me again.
“Richard wanted you protected because exposing your identity would threaten everything.”
Identity.
Not daughter.
Identity.
I suddenly understood something horrifying:
Richard didn’t protect me because he loved me.
He protected me because I was dangerous.
Proof.
Scandal.
Weakness.
Daniel’s voice lowered carefully.
“He kept you hidden from everyone.”
I looked at him like a stranger.
“And you helped him.”
That hit him hard.
Good.
Because it was true.
Daniel stayed silent.
Again.
Always silence.
Tears blurred my vision violently now.
Not sadness anymore.
Rage.
Pure rage.
“My entire life…”
My voice cracked.
“…was controlled by these people.”
Chairman Seo smiled faintly.
“No. Your life was spared by them.”
The sentence snapped something inside Daniel instantly.
He moved so fast I barely saw it.
One second he stood beside me.
The next—
Chairman Seo was slammed violently against the marble wall.
Gunmen immediately raised weapons.
Evelyn screamed.
But Daniel didn’t stop.
Years of buried hatred exploded across his face all at once.
“You don’t get to talk about her like that.”
Chairman Seo actually smiled.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Because suddenly it looked like this was exactly what he wanted.
Daniel finally realized it too.
Too late.
Chairman Seo lowered his voice calmly:
“You always were emotional, Daniel.”
Daniel’s entire body went rigid.
And suddenly I understood something terrifying:
Chairman Seo had manipulated Daniel his entire life exactly the same way Richard manipulated corporations.
Through guilt.
Fear.
Loyalty.
Control.
Daniel slowly released him.
Breathing unevenly.
Chairman Seo straightened his suit calmly.
Then looked directly at me.
“Your mother stole something that belongs to us.”
The file.
Of course.
“She died before revealing where she hid it.”
My pulse accelerated violently.
Chairman Seo stepped closer.
“And now…”
His eyes locked onto mine.
“…we believe she told you.”
The room went silent again.
Because suddenly I understood the terrifying truth:
They never kept me alive out of mercy.
They kept me alive because they thought eventually…
I would lead them to the file.
Daniel stepped in front of me instantly again.
Protective.
Instinctive.
Chairman Seo sighed softly.
“Still choosing her over survival.”
Daniel looked at him coldly.
“She’s the only thing in this room worth saving.”
The words shattered through me instantly.
Because despite everything…
part of me still believed him.
And that was the most dangerous thing of all.
Then suddenly—
a voice echoed from the dark hallway behind us.
Cold.
Furious.
Powerful.
“What the hell have you done?”
Everyone froze.
Richard Hart stood in the doorway.
And for the first time since I met him…
he looked afraid.