Chapter 9 - The Scope of the Plot
Mark paused, looking at his older brother in confusion. "Derek, he hurt Noah! Look at his arm!"
"I know," Derek said, his voice deadly serious. "And he's going to pay for every second of it. But hitting him right now won't fix what's really happening here."
Derek handed Travis’s phone over to Mark.
"Look at the screen," Derek said quietly. "Look at who Travis has been communicating with for the last six months."
Mark took the phone, his brow furrowed in confusion. He looked down at the open application on the screen. As his eyes read the names, the bank transfer records, and the detailed schematics of Mark's corporate security system—including Noah's daily preschool schedule—Mark's rage froze into cold, terrifying realization.
"This... this is my company's competitor," Mark whispered, his voice trembling. "They paid him to get close to my family? To use Noah as leverage against the merger?"
Travis shrank back into the sofa cushions, refusing to make eye contact with either brother.
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"He wasn't just abusing his position here, Mark," Derek said, stepping between the sofa and the door to ensure Travis couldn't run. "He was gathering intelligence to kidnap Noah before the board vote next week."
Mark looked from the phone screen to his terrified four-year-old son, who was clinging to his suit pants. The depth of the betrayal and danger left him completely breathless.
