Chapter 3 Chapitre 3

The meeting with the notary had been arranged by her parents, or rather by her father. He had insisted that Sophia should "finally put the family affairs in order." She hadn't understood why, but she had gone to the notary's address without asking any questions. It all seemed so ordinary at first glance, a meeting in a glass and wood office, like all the other appointments in the world of money and power. But something in the way the notary looked at her, something in the air in the room, told her that this meeting was going to leave its mark on her.

The notary, an elderly man with white hair and a tired expression, greeted her warmly but with a certain gravity. He did not waste time with unnecessary politeness. He placed a thick file, yellowed by time, on the table and pushed it towards her.

"This is the reason for your invitation, Mademoiselle de Ravel. This document contains information your family has long forgotten, things you deserve to know."

Sophia eyed him warily, her heart beating faster, but she took the file without saying a word. What the notary was saying seemed so... secret, so heavy. She opened the first page, her eyes quickly scanning the words written in an ancient script.

"Your grandfather, Armand de Ravel, was a respected businessman in the 1950s and 1960s," the notary said, observing her reaction. "He founded a major financial empire. However, due to complex personal events, your family chose to leave this legacy in the shadows, away from the public eye. You are the rightful heir to this fortune, Mademoiselle."

The words echoed in his mind. She, the heiress to a forgotten fortune? She, the incompetent heiress to an old dynasty? It all made no sense. Yet the notary didn't seem to be joking. He continued.

"Your grandfather had connections with influential figures. He made investments in sectors that, at the time, were promising: technology, real estate, industry. This is not just wealth, Miss. It is a power that he knew how to preserve with great discretion."

The notary's words rushed into her mind, a shockwave going through her. She had never heard of this fortune, not even a whisper about it in family conversations. The notary seemed to be waiting for her reaction, but Sophia had none. She stood there frozen, the pages of the file scrolling through her fingers without her being able to fully comprehend them.

"What should I do with all this?" she finally asked, her voice almost foreign to her own ears.

"I advise you to take the time to study everything. This wealth is now fragmented, but it is far from insignificant. You have a power that could rival giants like the Blackwells. But you must first understand the magnitude of this legacy. No one but you can carry it."

Sophia felt her heart race. She, the heiress to a forgotten empire? She wasn't even sure she wanted to carry such a burden. But a strange excitement began to grow inside her, a flame of curiosity, and perhaps, a glimmer of hope. Gabriel Blackwell had rejected her, yes. But perhaps, just as he had judged her name and heritage as insignificant, he was wrong. Perhaps what he had seen as weakness was actually hiding an unsuspected strength.

She left the notary with more questions than answers, her mind in torment. She went straight to her mentor, an old family friend, a man who had served as a guide to her father, but who had always had a special attention for her. He was one of those who, without talking about big business, knew how to read people's silences, understand what was left unsaid. For Sophia, he represented a kind of spiritual father, the one who knew things without saying them.

The old Montfort manor, where he resided, was the complete opposite of the ostentation of the Blackwell house. It was a place of calm, of contemplation, of wisdom too. When Sophia arrived, he was already waiting for her, a cup of tea in his hands. He looked at her with a discreet smile, but his eyes were piercing, full of that silent wisdom he had cultivated over the years.

"You have questions, Sophia," he said before she could even ask any. "I saw you coming with that look, a look I know well."

She sat down across from him, her hands shaking. "I just found out I'm the heiress to a fortune... a fortune my parents never knew existed. What should I do with it?"

He didn't answer immediately. He took a sip of his tea, his eyes lost in the steam rising from the cup. Then, finally, he put the cup down and turned to her.

"Do you really think this fortune will be given to you, just because you found out about it?" he said, his voice calm, almost amused. "No, Sophia. It's not that simple. This wealth isn't yours yet. It belongs to your heritage, to your lineage, and to how you see it. If you choose to use it, you'll have to earn it."

"But how? How to face an empire so ancient and so secret?" she replied, anxiety invading her again.

He smiled, a smile that spoke volumes. "You need to understand your family history. Wealth is nothing without the understanding of those who built it. Your grandfather did not accumulate it in the hope of passing it on to you with ease. He knew how to keep the keys. If you want to seize it, you must first understand what lies behind this wealth. It was not built in the shadows for nothing."

She stood up suddenly, her head full of thoughts, plans that were born in her mind. "I will recover it, this wealth. I will revive it."

Her mentor's gaze was filled with complicity, but also with a warning. "Be careful, Sophia. Remember that every power has a price."

But she didn't listen to him completely. She had made her decision. In the shadows, away from the eyes of those who thought they knew everything, she was going to revive her family's empire. She was going to find the power that the Blackwells had forgotten, and she was going to prove to them that she was much more than just an heir to a name. She was going to become the alpha of her own empire.

Night had fallen when Sophia returned home, but in her mind, the light burned brighter than ever. She knew now what she had to do. She also knew it wouldn't be easy. But everything was falling into place. Gabriel Blackwell had underestimated her ability to understand the world around her. He would soon learn that she was no longer the young woman he had despised when they first met. She was going to be the mistress of her own destiny.