Cynthia's fingers trembled as she locked the door behind her. The sound of the key turning echoed in her small apartment like a secret she wasn't ready to keep.
The evening city lights flickered through her window, slicing her reflection into pieces — her pale face, the worry in her eyes, and the faint bruise on her wrist where Alexander had grabbed her earlier that day.
She told herself it didn't matter. He was her boss. It wasn't personal. But her heart refused to believe that.
A sudden buzz from her phone made her flinch.
Unknown Number: "You shouldn't have been there, Cynthia."
Her breath caught. She stared at the screen, her pulse racing. The text disappeared a moment later — deleted remotely, leaving only an empty chat.
She sank onto her bed, clutching her phone. Was this Alexander? Or someone else watching her?
The next morning, she arrived at work early, her eyes shadowed by sleeplessness. Alexander was already there, leaning against his desk in a perfectly tailored suit, his gaze unreadable.
"You're early," he said coolly, eyes flicking up from a stack of papers.
"I… couldn't sleep," she admitted.
He smirked. "Good. It means you're taking your job seriously."
But something about his tone wasn't businesslike. It was a warning — or a test.
As she turned to leave his office, she overheard him on the phone. His voice dropped to a whisper.
"Make sure she doesn't find out anything else."
Cynthia froze in the hallway. She?
He was talking about her.
Her blood ran cold.
What exactly was Alexander hiding — and how much did he think she knew?