Marriage with my daughter's father: Darling please be gentle - Chapter 188

Chapter 188: Chapter 188: I’ll be there in few minutes
“There’s something I need to confirm, Grandpa.”

Winter leaned back in her chair, her gaze sharp and calculating. The shift in her demeanor made Byron’s brows furrow with unease.

The way she was looking at him — like she was studying his every move — made Byron feel cautious. Still, he couldn’t resist asking, “What is it you want to confirm?”

Without a word, Winter unlocked her phone and turned the screen toward him. A photo lit up — the image of a man in a tailored suit, his expression unreadable.

“Do you know this man?” she asked quietly.

Byron’s eyes narrowed as he took in the picture. The frown that formed on his face was instant.

“That’s Alexander,” he said, recognition flashing in his eyes.

“The investors meant to partner with me and Kalix’s father. But he pulled out at the last minute — no warning, no explanation.”

Winter studied his reaction carefully. She was relieved he recognized the man so quickly, but it didn’t answer the deeper question gnawing at her.

“And how much do you really know about him?” she pressed.

Byron tilted his head slightly. “What are you getting at, Winter? That’s a strange question.”

She hesitated for a beat, then laid her cards on the table.

“Kalix thinks he might be the one behind the recent threats on your life,” she said flatly. “He’s been watching him — tracking movements, connections. Alexander has ties to Eric. He was at the summit, too.”

Byron sat back, absorbing her words, his frown deepening.

“That doesn’t make sense,” he muttered, more to himself than to her. “He backed out of the deal. Why resurface now?”

“Exactly,” Winter replied. “He backed out, but he never really disappeared. He’s been circling, hiding in plain sight. Kalix believes he’s the one pulling the strings — and if that’s true, he’s more involved than we thought.”

Byron’s jaw tightened. His mind raced back through old meetings, subtle tensions, and overlooked details. He’d always assumed Alexander’s withdrawal was just another business loss. But now…

“He was close to Martin,” Winter added. “If he’s also close to Eric, then he could be the common link — the one orchestrating all of this.”

A long silence stretched between them.

Byron’s eyes darkened. “If he’s the one behind this… then we’re dealing with someone who knows exactly how to strike from the shadows.”

Winter nodded. “Which is why we need to know everything about him — his alliances, his motives, and why he’s targeting us now.”

Byron fell silent, struggling to process Winter’s words. Alexander and Eric know each other? That revelation unsettled him more than he cared to admit. If they were connected, how had he missed it?

His voice was low when he finally spoke. “Do you want me to confront Eric?”

Winter shook her head slowly. “I doubt confronting him will make him talk. He’s too careful for that. But yes — you should start monitoring him closely. Watch his moves, his communications. I’m certain you’ve already noticed he’s been building connections behind your back.”

Byron’s eyes narrowed. “Connections?”

Winter nodded, her expression grim. “Every investor who’s pulled out over the years? They’re all tied to him now — either through business or quiet alliances. He’s been working in the shadows, Grandpa. Undermining you, piece by piece.”

Each revelation hit Byron like a blow. The list of betrayals was stacking higher than he’d anticipated. And the worst part? It was happening right under his nose.

“He’s been playing a long game,” Winter continued. “And Alexander may be the one helping him finance it — or worse, guiding it.”

Byron’s jaw clenched. His fingers curled tightly around the armrest of his chair.

“How long have you known all this?” he asked.

Winter hesitated for a second. “Kalix started digging once the threats began. I asked him to keep me updated. The more we uncovered, the clearer the pattern became. Eric isn’t just a selfish opportunist — he’s dangerous. And he’s aligned himself with someone far more powerful than we realized.”

Silence settled over the room again, thick and heavy.

Byron leaned back, the weight of it all pressing down on his chest. “Then we can’t afford any more missteps.”

“No,” Winter agreed. “We can’t.”

Byron had been turning a blind eye to Eric for far too long — dismissing the warning signs, brushing off the inconsistencies. But now, with Winter’s words still ringing in his ears, he could no longer afford that luxury. Something about Eric’s involvement ran deeper, darker, and more deliberate than he had ever suspected.

The purpose behind it all remained murky, but the unease settling in Byron’s gut was impossible to ignore. This wasn’t just business betrayal — it felt personal.

Meanwhile, in another office down the hall, Eric slammed a file onto the desk, the sharp sound echoing off the walls. His jaw was tight, his eyes burning with restrained fury.

Winter’s voice — cold, confident, unforgiving — echoed in his mind like a curse he couldn’t shake off. But it wasn’t just her accusations that unsettled him.

There was something else.

Her sudden appearance at Greyson had blindsided him. Winter never came here. In all these years, she’d barely set foot inside the building. Her presence wasn’t routine — it was calculated.

“What the hell are you up to, Winter?” he muttered under his breath, pacing the length of his office.

She hadn’t come for him — that much was clear. She’d brushed past him without a second glance, her disdain sharp and deliberate. No, she was here for Byron. But why?

He ran a hand through his hair, agitation rolling off him in waves.

“Winter doesn’t just drop by unless it’s urgent,” he whispered to himself. “So what’s changed? What’s she found?”

The questions kept piling up, and with each one, a knot of dread tightened in his chest.

He was still reeling from the blow — the fact that she had been the one to expose his affair with Agnes to the world. The humiliation still burned like acid under his skin.

What cut deeper wasn’t just the exposure itself — it was that Winter hadn’t hesitated.

The same Winter who had spent years keeping to herself, barely acknowledging his existence, had suddenly turned the spotlight on him and torn his image to shreds. She’d painted him as a liar and a cheater — and the world had swallowed the narrative whole.

And she hadn’t done it alone.

Eric clenched his fists at the thought.

Winter might have been bold, but she didn’t have the reach or influence to pull that off without help. That man — Kalix Andreas — had to be the one backing her.

Of course he was.

The very idea of Winter and Kalix working together made his blood boil. She’d chosen her side, and it wasn’t his.

She never even gave him a chance to explain — not that she ever would.

Eric was still reeling, his jaw tight, eyes darkening with every passing second as the weight of betrayal settled heavily on his shoulders.

Rage and humiliation churned in his gut — but before his thoughts could spiral further, his phone buzzed sharply, cutting through the silence like a blade.

He snatched it off the desk and answered, voice clipped.

“What is it?”

“I’ve got what you asked for,” came the low voice on the other end. Calm. Steady. But with an edge of secrecy that made Eric sit up straighter.

A beat passed before Eric replied, his tone laced with urgency.

“I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

Without wasting another second, he ended the call, grabbed his coat, and strode out of the office. His mind was no longer clouded by doubt — only focus.

Meanwhile, Winter, who had just stepped out of Byron’s office, caught sight of Eric hurrying out of the building. There was a sharpness to his movements — a tension in his shoulders that instantly raised her guard.

Something wasn’t right.

Without hesitation, she made her way to the parking lot and slid behind the wheel. If Eric was leaving this urgently, it wasn’t for anything ordinary. And Winter had learned the hard way — never trust a snake just because it hasn’t bitten yet.

Keeping a safe distance, she tailed his car through the city. He drove with practiced caution at first, weaving through traffic at a steady pace. But the further they got from the heart of the business district, the more reckless he became — speeding up as he approached a more secluded, industrial part of town.

Winter slowed her own vehicle, pulling to the side and killing the engine as she watched from a distance.

Eric’s car rolled to a stop near an abandoned warehouse. Moments later, another man appeared — hooded, discreet, glancing around before approaching Eric’s driver-side window.

The two exchanged a few terse words before Eric reached out and took a small parcel from him. His posture was alert, eyes scanning the area as if expecting to be followed.

‘Too late,’ Winter thought, narrowing her eyes.

Something about the exchange set off every alarm in her head. It was too quick, too secretive. This wasn’t a casual meeting or a forgotten delivery — it was calculated.

Her fingers tightened around the steering wheel.

‘What are you up to, Eric? Who is he? What’s in that package’?

She didn’t have the answers yet — but she knew one thing for sure:

Eric was hiding something. And she was going to find out what.