Part 39 –
Some enemies fight from the outside.
But the most dangerous betrayals…
Come from the ones inside the gates.
The Calm Before the Courtroom
The city was bracing for the storm.
News stations buzzed with anticipation Wolfe Enterprises vs. Luthor Industries was being dubbed "The Trial of the Decade." Cameras waited outside the courthouse. Protestors gathered with signs. Stock prices dipped and swayed with every new leak.
Inside Wolfe Tower, the atmosphere was tense. Lila walked the halls like a commander before battle focused, unreadable. Her heels echoed down the marble floor as she met with Marion and Ethan in the boardroom.
"We present Victor's testimony first," Marion said. "Then we show the patent documents. The chain of ownership is clean."
"Lucien will try to discredit Victor," Ethan added. "So we need to show intent how he manipulated the board, exiled Victor, and silenced your mother."
Lila nodded. "He wants this to be about character. We'll make it about truth."
The Warning
That night, Lila received an anonymous message. No sender. No traceable source.
He knows your witness list. Someone inside your company is feeding him updates. You're bleeding from within.
Lila stared at the message.
It was simple.
Terrifying.
And potentially true.
The Internal Breach
She didn't tell Ethan. Not yet. She needed to think. And trust was suddenly a rare currency.
Instead, she called in her head of cybersecurity, Hannah DeWitt quiet, brilliant, fiercely loyal.
"Hannah," she said, locking the door behind them, "someone is leaking. I want a full sweep. Emails, calls, badge entries, VPN logs. Don't tell anyone. Not even Marion."
Hannah didn't flinch. "Understood. I'll start tonight."
By morning, the results made Lila's stomach turn.
Multiple unauthorized log-ins.
All traced to the same user.
Executive access credentials.
And the account belonged to…
Derek Klein.
Her assistant.
Confrontation
Derek had been by her side since the beginning. Young, eager, always punctual. She'd trusted him with schedules, court documents personal files.
When she called him into her office, he looked confused. Nervous.
"Is something wrong, Ms. Whitmore?"
Lila held up the access logs. "You logged into private directories. You copied files to an encrypted drive."
Derek's eyes widened. "I no! I didn't"
"Stop." Her voice was steel. "Lucien paid you?"
Silence.
Then, slowly, he nodded.
Tears welled in his eyes. "He said it was just for strategy. That you'd be fine. I needed the money my sister's surgery"
Lila stood. "You could've come to me."
"I thought I was helping you. That if he had an outlet, he'd go easier"
"You gave him Victor's name, Derek. You risked his life." Her voice cracked. "Get out. Security will escort you. And you'll testify."
He didn't beg. Just nodded, ashamed.
As he left, Lila turned to the window, trying to breathe.
Another betrayal. Another scar.
But no more lies.
Courtroom Day One
The courtroom was cold and humming with whispers. Press lined every seat, cameras outside fed live updates to millions.
Lucien sat across from Lila, his gaze smug, suit immaculate.
She didn't blink.
Victor Mirov took the stand first. The room hushed.
His voice was gravelly but sure.
He spoke of Eleanor. Of the betrayal. Of how Lucien coerced the board, bribed regulators, and pushed him into exile.
He held up a letter Eleanor had written the night before she died.
"I may not live to see my daughter finish this war, Victor," she wrote. "But give her this when she's ready. She is fire. And you don't put out fire. You teach it to burn for the right things."
The jury listened, stunned.
Lucien's lawyer tried to dismiss Victor as senile, bitter. But the paper trail held. The facts aligned. And Lila's documents backed it all.
Lucien's jaw clenched for the first time.
He was slipping.
After the Storm
Outside the courthouse, Lila stood before flashing cameras.
"Today, we showed the world that history doesn't belong to the victors. It belongs to the truthful. And tomorrow, we continue."
That night, Ethan found her on the balcony of Wolfe Tower, staring out over the city lights.
"I heard about Derek," he said gently.
She nodded, tired. "He wasn't the first to betray me. He won't be the last."
"But you're still standing."
She looked up at him.
"Barely."
Ethan stepped closer, cupping her face.
"Then lean on me. I'm not going anywhere."
She smiled softly.
For the first time in weeks, she let herself rest her forehead against his.
The war wasn't over.
But she wasn't fighting alone.