Chapter 140: Chapter 140
Adam kept looking at Monica.
The question in his mind did not leave at once.
Adrian Valcrest knew how to read people. He knew his sister well enough to warn her. Then how had Monica ended up near John in the future?
Adam could not answer it.
Monica was still sitting across from him. She had just said that Adrian once told her she did not know how to read the room.
Adam blinked once and came back to the present.
Then he said, "Yes. Your brother was not wrong."
Monica froze.
"What?"
Adam did not take the words back.
Monica stared at him for a second, then her brows pulled together. "What do you mean by that, Adam?"
Her brother could say something like that. Adrian had raised her in his own way. He knew her habits. He knew how she missed things when she trusted someone. Even if those words hurt, Monica could accept them from him.
Adrian had seen her since she was a child. He knew when she was pretending to be brave. He knew when she was missing the real meaning behind a person’s smile. If he told her she could not read a room, then he was speaking from years of watching her.
But Adam was different.
Adam knew her from college. Yes, they had spent some time together. Yes, she had told him her secret today. But he had mostly seen the version of her that she showed everyone. That did not mean he knew her well enough to say the same thing.
She could not understand why he had said it so directly.
"Why did you say that?" Monica asked again.
Adam stayed silent.
He had not wanted to start this.
Until now, he had been careful around John. He had avoided direct moves because one wrong step could leave a trail. One trail could turn into a hand around his throat. John had been dangerous in the future, and Adam had carried that fear inside him from the moment he returned.
But as he looked at Monica, another thought rose in him.
’Why am I still so scared of you, John?’
The thought was quiet at first, then it became sharper.
’Will you kill me right now? No. You do not even know half of what I have.’
Adam had future knowledge. He had the copy and paste power. Money was already moving for him, and the people around Aster Core had become a net that John could not see clearly yet.
’I can outsmart you,’ Adam thought. ’I know I can.’
Aster Core had changed something in him.
When John attacked the company through his father, Adam had understood one thing clearly. If he kept only defending, then this would never end. Today John hit Aster Core. Tomorrow Adam would build something else, and John would hit that too. Then Adam would defend again.
That was not revenge.
That was only hiding and running with better tools.
Adam had not started building this network to show off. He had not gathered this much power just to stay alive in a corner forever.
He had started all this because he wanted revenge.
And if revenge was the goal, then he could not keep playing only defense.
’Enough,’ Adam thought.
His eyes returned to Monica.
She was still waiting for his answer.
Adam spoke slowly. "When someone talks to you sweetly, when someone always looks good in front of you, it does not always mean that person is kind."
Monica’s face changed a little.
Adam continued, "Maybe they want something from you, and you are not seeing it."
Monica did not answer at once.
She was not a child. She might not read every room well, but she could understand the direction of a sentence. Adam was not speaking about some random stranger. She did not meet many people closely. In college, there were only a few people around her often enough for this warning to matter.
And one name came to her mind before the others.
"Are you talking about John?" she asked.
Adam’s face did not change.
He did not say yes or no.
That silence made the question heavier.
Monica leaned forward a little. "Adam, are you talking about John?"
Adam looked at her calmly.
"If you are going to question me like this," he said, "then I should leave."
Monica stopped.
Adam pulled the books closer. He had taken them out only to make the meeting look normal, but now he started putting them back into his bag.
Monica’s eyes widened slightly.
She lifted both hands a little, as if trying to stop him without touching him.
"Wait," she said. "Wait. I went over the line."
Adam paused, but he did not sit back properly.
Monica lowered her voice. "I just did not expect you to say something like that. And when you refused to answer, it made me think more."
Adam looked at her.
Monica pressed her lips together, then spoke again.
"I won’t force you to talk about it."
Adam watched her for a moment.
There was worry in her face now. Not fear, but worry. She wanted an answer, but she also understood that Adam had drawn a line.
Adam did not feel like softening it.
"Let’s stop here for today," he said.
He closed the bag and stood up.
Monica also moved as if she would stand, then stopped herself. The food on the table had barely been touched. The open notebook between them still had no notes inside it.
Adam adjusted the strap of his bag.
He was about to turn away when Monica spoke again.
"Adam."
He stopped.
Monica looked up at him.
"I told you so much about myself," she said. "I want to know about you too."
Adam did not answer.
Monica’s voice became quieter.
"Who are you?"
The question stayed between them.
Adam stood beside the table and looked at her for a long moment.
Then he gave her the smallest answer.
"There is nothing special about me," he said. "I do not have a story that would interest you."
After saying that, he turned and walked out of the restaurant.
