CHAPTER 3: THE SON WHO CHOSE SUCCESS OVER TRUTH
CHAPTER 3: THE SON WHO CHOSE SUCCESS OVER TRUTH
Grant looked toward the exits.
There was nowhere to go.
Every camera remained fixed on him.
Every livestream continued.
A reporter finally asked the question everyone was thinking.
"Mr. Harlan..."
"Did you steal your father's manuscript?"
Grant closed his eyes.
For several long seconds...
He said nothing.
Then, quietly—
"Yes."
Gasps swept through the hall.
"I changed parts of it."
"I modernized the ending."
"I thought no one would ever know."
His voice cracked.
"My publisher loved it."
"They told me the story deserved a younger name."
William listened without interrupting.
Grant continued.
"I kept telling myself I'd tell the truth after the first book."
"Then came the bestseller."
"The awards."
"The interviews."
"The money."
"I didn't know how to stop lying."
Across the room, Ethan lowered his head.
Not in anger.
In heartbreak.
William finally spoke.
"I never cared about the money."
Grant looked up.
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"I cared that my son believed success was worth more than honesty."
Those words hurt more than every headline that would follow.
