Elena’s hands trembled as she shut the door, twisting the lock with more force than necessary. The sharp click echoed through the silence of her apartment, but it did little to ease the unease coiling in her chest.Lucas’s voice still clung to the air like a ghostly whisper—smooth, calculated, dangerous."We need to talk."Her fingers clenched into fists. She had barely managed to send him away, her voice steady despite the turmoil inside her. She had lied—told him she was exhausted, that they could meet tomorrow.He hadn’t believed her.She had seen it in the way his eyes had lingered on her face, in the slow, deliberate way he had nodded before stepping back into the shadows of the dimly lit hallway.And now, alone in her apartment, she could finally let the fear sink in.Lucas knew.He knew she had found the payment.And that meant she was closer to the truth than she had ever been before.A shaky breath left her lips as she leaned against the door, pressing her palms against the c
Sophie had worked for Adrian for years.She knew every schedule, every meeting, and every deal before it happened.But tonight, as she sat at her desk, her fingers scrolling through the company’s financial logs, something wasn’t adding up.Her brows furrowed, and she leaned in closer.There.A payment.A hidden transfer made years ago, buried deep beneath layers of transactions that should have never been there.She clicked on it, her breath catching as the recipient’s name loaded onto the screen.Lucas.A sharp chill ran down her spine.She wasn’t the type to jump to conclusions. She had seen plenty of business deals pass through Adrian’s office—but this?This wasn’t business.This was personal.Her fingers hovered over the mouse, hesitating before clicking deeper into the records. The more she uncovered, the worse the feeling in her gut became. This wasn’t just a mistake or a misfiled report. This was deliberate.Someone had wanted this payment hidden.Someone had wanted it forgotte
Sophie had met with Elena and told her everything. Every detail, every transaction, every suspicion she had uncovered about Lucas.Elena listened in silence, her eyes dark with something unreadable—pain, regret, or maybe just exhaustion from carrying this burden alone. When Sophie finished, Elena let out a slow breath, running a hand through her hair."When I started digging, Lucas became a suspect," Elena said, her voice quieter than before. "I gathered proof and showed it to Adrian, but he never believed me." She shook her head, the disappointment evident."I think with this proof that you've found, he might finally listen. At least, hearing and seeing more evidence from another source will force him to question what he thought was true."Sophie hesitated. "And if he doesn’t?"Elena’s gaze sharpened. "Then we’re back where we started."A tense silence hung between them.Then, Elena whispered, her voice urgent. "But Sophie, whatever you do, please be careful. Keep this between you an
Adrian pulled up outside the dimly lit parking garage, his grip tightening around the steering wheel. The hum of the engine faded into heavy silence, but inside his chest, his heart pounded like a war drum.Sophie had insisted they meet here—away from his office, away from prying eyes. It was an unusual request, but nothing about the past few days had been normal.He exhaled sharply and stayed in the car, his sharp gaze scanning the area. The distant hum of city traffic barely reached the underground space, swallowed by thick concrete walls and flickering overhead lights.Sophie was standing near the elevator, with her laptop clutched so tightly in her hands, her posture was tense, shoulders squared, as if bracing for impact.She approached his car, Adrain's voice was low but edged with impatience. “You better have a good reason for dragging me here. Get in.”Sophie didn’t waste a second. She got in and openedher laptop. “You need to see this now. I don’t know how long I’ll have acces
Adrian sat at the head of the long glass table, his sharp gaze swept over the room. Every board member was present, their expressions a mixture of skepticism and unease. The tension in the air was thick, an unspoken battle of power brewing beneath the surface.Across from him, his rival, Richard leaned back in his chair, the very picture of smug confidence. His fingers drummed lazily against the polished table, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as if he had already won. His eyes flickered with amusement, daring Adrian to challenge him.But Adrian wasn’t amused.He shifted slightly, his jaw tightening as he noted the hushed murmurs between the board members. Richard had been working in the shadows, planting seeds of doubt, twisting the narrative. Adrian could see it in their hesitant glances, in the way some of them avoided his eyes.Then his gaze caught something—or rather, someone—standing near the door.Elena.She wasn’t supposed to be here.His pulse quickened, but he force
Adrian sat in his office, staring at the cityscape beyond the glass walls. The skyline stretched before him, a dazzling sea of lights, but he barely saw it. His thoughts were tangled in the past, in memories he had long buried but never truly escaped.For years, he had been certain of what had happened that night—the night everything had fallen apart. The night he had walked into his office and seen the undeniable proof of Elena’s betrayal.The night he had let her go.Yet now, an unsettling doubt curled its way into his chest, wrapping around his ribs like iron chains. It was an ache that refused to fade, a whisper that refused to be silenced.Had he been wrong all along?He exhaled sharply and leaned forward, elbows resting on his desk. His fingers curled into a fist as he forced himself to relive that night in excruciating detail.The office had been dimly lit, the glow from his desk lamp casting eerie shadows across the room. The moment he stepped inside, he knew something was off
Adrian paced his office, his jaw clenched so tightly it hurt. His mind spun with everything he had just discovered. He had spent years hating the one person who had never betrayed him.The guilt was suffocating.It coiled around him like a noose, tightening with each breath. The realization that he had condemned Elena based on lies burned like acid. He had let his anger blind him, had shut her out without giving her a chance to defend herself.But guilt wouldn’t fix anything.He needed proof. Evidence that would expose the real betrayers and clear Elena’s name. He wouldn’t make the mistake of acting on assumptions again.His hand hovered over his phone, ready to call his investigator, when it rang.Unknown number.Adrian hesitated before answering. "Who is this?"A hesitant voice responded, "Mr. Adrian?""Yes.""My name is Nathan. I used to work in your company a few years ago."Adrian’s heart pounded harder. The name was familiar, buried in his memory. "And?"Nathan hesitated. "I kno
Elena sat in her small apartment, staring at the city lights through her window. The past few days had shaken her. Secrets were surfacing, truths unraveling. Adrian was beginning to see that she had never betrayed him.But did it matter?Her fingers traced the rim of her coffee cup as she tried to ignore the ache in her chest. She had spent years trying to hate him. She had told herself over and over that the man who destroyed her didn’t deserve her love.And yet…She closed her eyes and let the memories flood in—memories she had buried deep, but never truly let go of.She had loved Adrian from the very first moment. He wasn’t just a billionaire CEO wrapped in an intimidating aura; he was kind beneath the ice, fiercely protective, and the only man who had ever truly seen her.Their love had been a wildfire, intense and unstoppable.He had held her like she was the most precious thing in the world. Whispered promises in the dark. Made her believe she was the one thing in his life that
“No. Don’t lock the leak. Keep the route open. We’re baiting them.”Another pause. Adrain’s fingers tapped the edge of the desk lightly.“They bypassed surface-level security. That wasn’t random. Someone’s been inside—knows our system language. I want full trace protocols on the backend. Key mirroring. Subtle algorithm shifts. Anything they’ve left behind.”He listened, eyes never leaving Elena.“Yes. Remote only. Do not alert IT. Don’t even breathe a word in our system channels. If anyone asks, say we’re on routine maintenance.”He ended the call.Elena came beside him, her fingers grazing the back of his hand. “You’re setting a trap.”“We’re giving them a stage,” he corrected. “Let them feel safe. Let them perform.”She tilted her head, her voice soft. “And then?”He turned to her, eyes gleaming in the low light. “Then the curtain falls.”He moved to the liquor cabinet and poured two glasses—one for him, one for her. He handed hers with a subtle grin, the tension between them meltin
Elena was already rising, hurrying toward his seat with her tablet. “Look. Look at this! There’s been an unauthorized transaction—massive funds have just been moved out of one of the company’s sub-accounts.”Adrain snatched the device and scanned the screen. His breath caught. “Twenty-five million dollars... gone?”“It’s real. It just happened,” she said. “Our system just flagged it as an anomaly because of the destination account—it’s masked.”“Get the tech team on the line. Now!” Adrain ordered, already heading toward his office with Elena right behind him.Within minutes, the company’s head of cybersecurity, appeared on the large screen in the home office, his face pale.“Sir, we just noticed it as well. The system flagged it seconds after the funds moved.”“Who the hell did this?” Adrain’s voice was laced with ice.“We’re still tracing it. The hacker covered their tracks with precision. This wasn’t amateur work—this was planned. The account used was buried deep under layers of hid
The warehouse was cold, shadowed by rusted iron beams and buzzing with dim overhead lights. A thick air of tension filled the room as Elias Wolfe paced back and forth, his jaw clenched, his hands fisted at his sides.His men stood before him—four in total—each with their heads slightly lowered, avoiding the furious gaze of the man they feared more than death itself.“So,” Elias finally said, his voice cold and slow like a blade being drawn. “You mean to tell me… even after planning this for over a week, with the timing perfect, the positioning flawless… you still couldn’t cause one simple accident?”Silence.One of the men, lean and dark-haired, cleared his throat and stepped forward hesitantly. “Boss, we—we almost had it. It was so close. The car exited on schedule, we followed the pattern, and everything was on track—”“And yet,” Elias cut in, glaring, “she’s alive. Again.”“They out did us and crossed before the train did, they used the train to their advantage, boss,” another spok
She smiled at him—actually smiled. “Adrian, it was like something out of an action movie. I swear, my heart hasn’t stopped pounding.”Adrian’s jaw clenched. “That’s not funny.”“I know, I know,” she said quickly, putting her hands up in surrender. “But we’re alive, right? Safe. You should have seen my driver—he pulled the craziest move. Those guys almost caught up to us, but then the train—oh my God, Adrian—the train!”She broke into a laugh, the tension of adrenaline still unraveling from her bones.“We were being chased, and then out of nowhere, a train’s approaching, full speed. My driver saw it, gauged the timing and boom—we made it across just seconds before it passed. The attackers got stuck on the other side. I think I screamed.”“You think you screamed?” Adrian stared at her, eyes blazing. “Elena, you were nearly killed. Again.”She reached out and cupped his face, softening her tone. “I know, Adrian. I know it was real. I was scared out of my mind. But I'm also grateful to be
The black SUV sat idling across the street, blending into the row of parked cars. Inside, Elias Wolfe’s men sat silently, watching the entrance of Elena’s office building through tinted windows.A call came in.Elias’s voice cut through like a blade. “She’s coming out soon. I want her in the hospital. Hit them so hard, or chase them toward an accident. Adrian will be weak. And then,” his voice darkened, “we strike him badly.”“Yes, sir,” one of the men answered. “We’ll make it look like an accident.”Elias ended the call with a smirk and stared at the city skyline from his penthouse. “Let’s see how much strength you still have, Adrian.”The day had been oddly quiet—too quiet.Elena stepped out of the building, phone in hand, bag on her shoulder. Her special driver, a combat-trained chauffeur Adrian had handpicked, opened the door for her. He noticed something off but kept calm.“Everything okay, ma’am?” he asked as she settled into the backseat.Elena smiled. “Yes. Let’s head home.”T
The morning sun spilled into the office through floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a warm glow on the sleek, polished floors of the company. Despite the recent attempt on her life, Elena walked in with quiet confidence, her head held high. She wore a cream blazer over a silk blouse, paired with tailored pants that complimented her poise—unshaken and graceful.The secretaries greeted her with relief and admiration. Some even paused in their work to offer shy smiles or nods of encouragement. Everyone had heard whispers of the near-fatal accident. Everyone also knew she survived. And now she was back.Elena smiled, calm but fierce.She stepped into her office and took a deep breath. The scent of lavender still lingered in the air from her favorite diffuser. Her assistant, walked in seconds later, holding a cup of coffee.“You’re here,” she said with a breath of surprise. “After everything…”Elena accepted the coffee and smiled. “They want me to crawl back into hiding. But I won’t give the
The screech of tires tore through the quiet afternoon, followed by the sickening sound of metal crunching against metal.A black SUV skidded violently off the road, slamming into a row of safety barriers just outside the quiet café district on the outskirts of the city. Smoke hissed from the crumpled hood as bystanders screamed and rushed toward the wreck.Inside the second vehicle—the intended target—no one was present except the driver. The passenger seat where Elena was supposed to sit... empty.She had stepped into a boutique moments before the crash.The driver, stunned and bloodied, tried to move, but his arm was pinned. Nearby, someone called emergency services. Another pulled open the crumpled door. But the damage had already been done—just not to the right person.Because Elena was safe.And the accident had failed.Adrian's phone rang as he was finishing a meeting. The words “It’s Elena” from his assistant had him tearing out of the building before the call even ended.When
One of the other men, Mr. Crane raised a brow. “That’s bold. Even for you.”“I don’t have the luxury of waiting around,” Adrian said plainly. “I built my company to withstand storms—economic, corporate, even personal. And through every storm, we’ve delivered results, year after year.”He let that settle before continuing. “I know the others will come with flashy slides and empty promises. I came with proof. And with relationships that weren’t built yesterday.”Mr. Stan chuckled, leaning back. “You always did know when to strike. And you’re right—we go way back. We’ve seen how your company weathered chaos and came out on top every single time.”Crane exchanged a glance with the third executive, then nodded slowly. “So what are you offering today?”Adrian slid the folder toward them. “Everything you asked for—and more. With guarantees. No delays. No press. Just results.”The room went quiet again as they opened the folder and scanned the proposal. Minutes ticked by like seconds. Then ca
The ride home from the board meeting was quiet, but it wasn’t silence filled with tension—it was the quiet before a storm. The kind of stillness that wrapped around a plan forming, a decision waiting to unfold.Inside the villa, Adrian discarded his blazer and sat at the head of the long mahogany dining table. Elena brought over a fresh cup of coffee and took the seat across from him, her eyes steady and calm.“We need to talk,” she said, folding her hands together.“I know,” Adrian nodded. “The deal.”She leaned in slightly. “You said it yourself—it’s one of the biggest we’ve ever aimed for. If we secure it, we bury Elias and any threat from within the board. But we’ve got problems.”Adrian rubbed his jaw. “The board knows about the deal. Which means our mole—Mr. Trent—knows too. Elias has his ears and likely already made moves to sabotage or outbid us.”“And other companies are in the race,” Elena added. “Bigger names, hungry to win, with no drama dragging them down.”Adrian’s eyes