Chapter 6: The Person Watching Us
The photograph on my phone made my blood run cold.
It wasn’t a picture taken from memory.
It wasn’t something old.
It wasn’t a threat from someone trying to scare me with a forgotten secret.
It was taken moments ago.
Inside this cabin.
From an angle that meant someone had been close enough to see us.
Close enough to capture Grant, Sloane, and me standing together.
Close enough to know exactly what was happening.
I looked around the jet.
The executives.
The flight attendants.
The empty seats.
The polished walls.
Everything suddenly felt different.
A private jet was supposed to be the safest place in the world.
No strangers.
No cameras.
No unexpected visitors.
But someone had been watching us.
And they wanted me to know.
“Victoria?””
Grant’s voice pulled me back.
I looked up.
His expression had changed completely.
The arrogance was gone.
The irritation.
The certainty that he could control every outcome.
Gone.
Now he looked like the man I had seen years ago when Ashford Dynamics almost collapsed.
A man facing a threat he couldn’t negotiate away.
“Show me.””
I handed him my phone.
He looked at the image.
The color drained from his face.
“Where did you get this?””
“An unknown number.””
“When?””
“Seconds ago.””
He looked toward the cockpit.
“Captain.””
The captain appeared almost immediately.
“Yes, Mr. Ashford?””
“Can anyone access the cabin cameras?””
Captain Ellis hesitated.
“Not normally.””
“Normally?””
His hesitation said everything.
Grant’s voice sharpened.
“Captain.””
The captain glanced at me.
Then back at Grant.
“The aircraft security system has two layers. Internal monitoring and external maintenance access.””
“And?””
“And someone with high-level authorization could temporarily access certain systems.””
Grant’s eyes narrowed.
“Who has that level?””
The captain answered carefully.
“Only authorized aviation personnel.””
Silence.
Then Sloane spoke.
“Unless someone used a company credential.””
Everyone looked at her.
She swallowed.
“Ashford Dynamics has access to aircraft systems because the jet is part of the corporate fleet.””
Grant turned toward her.
“You’re saying someone inside the company did this?””
“I’m saying it’s possible.””
I looked at Grant.
A familiar feeling returned.
That feeling I had when I first saw the acquisition documents.
The feeling that the truth was standing in front of me, but every person around me knew more than I did.
“How many people have access?””
Grant didn’t answer immediately.
That was enough.
“Grant.””
“Victoria—”
“How many?””
He looked away.
“Six.””
“Names.””
“Not here.””
I stared at him.
“You still don’t understand.””
“What?””
“This isn’t about protecting me anymore.””
His face tightened.
“It’s about knowing who is trying to threaten us.””
The word us surprised me.
Because for years, I had wondered whether there was still an us.
But right now, trapped on this plane with someone trying to manipulate the situation, we were standing on the same side.
At least temporarily.
Grant turned to Captain Ellis.
“Lock the cabin.””
The captain nodded.
“Already done.””
“And the cockpit?””
“Secured.””
Grant looked at me.
“Stay here.””
I almost laughed.
The command came naturally.
Like he couldn’t help himself.
“Excuse me?””
“I need to handle this.””
“No.””
“Victoria.””
“No.””
His jaw tightened.
“You could be in danger.””
I stepped closer.
“So could you.””
“This isn’t the time—”
“Actually, it is.””
I lowered my voice.
“Because if someone inside your company is doing this, I have a right to know.””
He looked at me.
Then finally nodded.
“Fine.””
The word sounded painful.
Like giving me information was harder for him than facing an enemy.
Captain Ellis approached with a tablet.
“Mrs. Ashford, we found something.””
My attention shifted.
“What?””
He turned the screen toward me.
A security log.
A failed authorization attempt.
Time stamp.
Location.
Access code.
I read it.
Then stopped.
“What is this?””
Grant moved beside me.
His face changed when he saw the name.
“Impossible.””
I looked at him.
“You know this person?””
He didn’t answer.
The silence was becoming unbearable.
“Grant.””
He looked at me.
“The access attempt came from whose account?””
He swallowed.
“Mine.””
Nobody spoke.
The cabin went still.
“Your account?””
“Yes.””
“That makes no sense.””
“I know.””
I stared at the screen.
Someone had used Grant’s credentials to override the aircraft.
Someone had either stolen his access or…
No.
I didn’t want to think the second possibility.
“You told me only six people had access.””
“They do.””
“And your account is one of them.””
“Yes.””
I looked at him.
“So someone is pretending to be you.””
Grant nodded.
“Or someone has been inside my systems for a long time.””
The second possibility hung between us.
Inside.
That word again.
Someone close.
Someone trusted.
I looked toward Sloane.
She noticed.
“I know what you’re thinking.””
“Do you?””
“Yes.””
Her voice was calm.
“You think because of my father, because of my last name, I’m connected to this.””
I didn’t answer.
Because she was right.
That was exactly what I thought.
She nodded slowly.
“I would think the same thing.””
That response caught me off guard.
“You’re not going to defend yourself?””
“I can’t prove anything by saying I’m innocent.””
She looked at the screen.
“But I can tell you something.””
“What?””
“My father spent years trying to find someone inside Ashford Dynamics.””
Grant’s expression changed.
“Stop.””
Sloane looked at him.
“No.””
The confidence was back.
Not arrogance.
Something stronger.
Determination.
“You kept saying you were protecting Victoria.””
Grant went still.
“But you never told her the full truth.””
I looked at Grant.
“What truth?””
He didn’t respond.
Sloane continued.
“Your father wasn’t the only person who investigated Marcus Whitmore.””
I frowned.
“Marcus?””
“Yes.””
“The investor?””
She nodded.
“My father believed Marcus was connected to the Vale collapse.””
Grant looked uncomfortable.
“Sloane.””
“No.””
She turned toward him.
“She deserves to know.””
My chest tightened.
“What does Marcus have to do with this?””
Sloane looked at me.
“He wasn’t just an investor.””
“Then what was he?””
She hesitated.
Then:
“He was the person who introduced Grant to the investors who saved Ashford Dynamics.””
I looked at Grant.
“I know that.””
“No.””
Sloane shook her head.
“You don’t.””
The cabin seemed colder.
“What are you saying?””
She looked directly at me.
“I’m saying Marcus Whitmore didn’t save Ashford Dynamics.””
A pause.
“He built it using what he took from Vale.””
I felt like the floor disappeared.
Grant immediately stepped forward.
“That’s enough.””
But this time, I noticed something.
He wasn’t angry at Sloane for lying.
He was angry because she was saying something he didn’t want me to hear.
I looked at him.
“Is it true?””
“Victoria.””
“Is it true?””
He closed his eyes.
Just for a second.
Then opened them.
“I don’t know.””
The answer shocked me.
“You don’t know?””
“I found evidence pointing in that direction.””
“Then why didn’t you tell me?””
“Because I wasn’t sure.””
“No.””
I shook my head.
“You didn’t tell me because you were afraid of what I would do.””
He didn’t deny it.
And I knew.
I knew I was right.
Because Grant knew me.
He knew I would never ignore my father’s name being dragged through the dirt.
He knew I would follow every document.
Every transaction.
Every hidden account.
Until I found the truth.
A sharp alarm suddenly sounded.
Everyone froze.
Captain Ellis rushed back from the cockpit.
“We have another issue.””
Grant turned.
“What now?””
The captain looked at him.
“The aircraft’s communication system has been compromised.””
My stomach dropped.
“What does that mean?””
The captain’s face was serious.
“It means someone is trying to isolate the aircraft.””
Grant looked at the cockpit.
“Can they control the plane?””
“No.””
A pause.
“But they can prevent outside communication.””
Silence.
The meaning was clear.
Someone didn’t want us calling for help.
Someone wanted us alone.
I looked at the photograph again.
The person watching us.
The hidden access.
The stolen credentials.
The secrets about my father.
Everything connected.
Then my phone buzzed.
Another message.
This time, no threat.
No warning.
Just a name.
A name that made Grant immediately sit down.
*Marcus Whitmore.*
And beneath it:
*Ask your husband what happened the night your father died.*
I looked at Grant.
The question I had avoided for years suddenly stood in front of me.
Because there was one thing nobody had ever explained.
The night my father died.
The night Grant had disappeared for three hours.
The night he told me he was “handling a business emergency.””
I had believed him.
Until now.
“Grant.””
He looked at me.
And for the first time in fifteen years, I saw something I never thought I would see in his eyes.
Fear.
Not of losing money.
Not of losing power.
Fear of me discovering the truth.
“What happened that night?”” I whispered.
His face went pale.
May you like
And after a long silence, he said:
“I wasn’t alone.””
