Chapter twenty four
The boardroom still hummed faintly with the echoes of deep voices and closing deals. Suits brushed against one another, polished shoes clicked against marble, and laughter,low and rich,spilled like smoke from the lips of men who thrived on wealth and control. Sebastian stood among them, tall and sure, his presence demanded even when he didn't speak.
One older gentleman clapped him on the shoulder.
"If Maison de la Croix takes that overseas trip into consideration, it would be a power move. Your father will be impressed."
Another chimed in, his voice soaked in admiration.
"And bring your PA next time, Sebastian. Kings don't waste time on the little details—leave that to the staff. You carry yourself like Victor already."
Sebastian smirked, offering little more than nods and that sharp, lazy charm he wielded so well. Hands clasped, promises were exchanged, and the circle of men bowed out one by one. Soon the room was empty, the heavy doors shutting behind them with a dull echo.
Silence.
Sebastian leaned back in his chair, letting the quiet swallow the air. For a moment, he sat in it this throne of glass and polished wood, the smell of cigars and old money still clinging to the walls. He had been crowned in their eyes already, the heir apparent, the next Victor Cross. But his thoughts were elsewhere.
Not on mergers. Not on investments.
On him.
That damn boy sitting in his office like a trembling little mouse, probably still sulking in those janitor's clothes. The memory made Sebastian's lips twitch into a dark smile. Entertainment was waiting. And Sebastian never liked to keep himself waiting long.
His phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen one of his friends, reminding him about the boxing match. He answered smoothly, voice relaxed.
"Tomorrow. I'll be there. Weekend's light."
As he hung up, his reflection in the boardroom glass caught his eye. He adjusted his cufflinks, smoothing out the line of his suit, every movement practiced, precise. In here, he was their king. Out there he could be whatever devil he wanted.
And right now, he had one particular soul to torment.
Sebastian rose, the chair scraping back, and walked out with measured steps, his smirk lingering, sharp and cruel.
____
Kairen sat stiff behind his desk, his fingers drumming against the wood, eyes flicking to the clock on the wall every few breaths. The meeting should be over by now. Any minute, Sebastian could come striding through that door, ready to start again, ready to pull him apart piece by piece for his amusement. The thought alone pressed sweat into his palms. His chest felt tight, as though the air itself was preparing to collapse on him.
But then like a thorn pushing deeper into flesh another memory intruded. Julian. The way Kairen had snapped at him earlier, the sharp edge in his voice, the unkindness he hadn't even tried to disguise. He replayed it now and winced. It hadn't been Julian's fault. Not the misunderstanding, not the awkwardness. He had only tried to care. And Kairen had cut him down, brutally, for no reason other than that he needed somewhere to bleed out his rage.
He pressed his hand to his mouth, exhaling hard. "That was unnecessary," he muttered into the quiet. Too harsh. Too absurd. Even for the mess his head was in, he couldn't justify it.
The thought of Julian's expression the confusion, the quiet hurt in his eyes gnawed at him until sitting still became unbearable. Fear of Sebastian weighed heavily, but the guilt pressed harder. If he stayed here, waiting like some animal in a trap, he would lose himself. No. Not this time.
Kairen shoved back his chair, the legs scraping against the floor. He rose, straightened the janitor's uniform Sebastian had forced on him, and let out a shaky breath. His heart thundered in his chest, not only because Sebastian might be on his way, but because he had chosen to walk out before Sebastian could drag him.
He was going to find Julian. He was going to apologize.
Even if the office eyes burned holes through him again, even if Sebastian walked in and found him gone, Kairen decided he would not just sit here, waiting to be broken.
---
The afternoon had grown heavy with noise phones ringing, keyboards clattering, the occasional echo of shoes against marble floors. Yet, as soon as Kairen stepped into the open, the hum shifted. It wasn't silence exactly, but the kind of muffled pause that came when people tried not to stare, yet couldn't help themselves.
He felt the weight of their eyes the customers waiting near the front desk, the executives passing by with clipped voices, even the receptionists pretending to scroll through their screens. Every glance cut into him, the janitor's uniform branding him more than fabric ever could. His skin crawled, his breath coming sharp and shallow.
For a moment, halfway across the lobby, he froze. His chest tightened, legs ready to fold and run back to the small safety of his office. He could hide there, shut the blinds, pretend the world wasn't watching. But the thought of Sebastian walking in, finding him there cowering, smiling that cruel smile, no. No, he couldn't.
He forced air into his lungs, exhaling through parted lips. One foot, then the other. He straightened his back not out of pride, but survival and pushed himself forward.
The sound of his own footsteps grew too loud as he reached the stairs. The chatter of the building returned, louder now, like whispers swelling at his back. He imagined every voice was about him, every snicker proof that Sebastian had succeeded in turning him into a spectacle.
Down he went, step by step, descending into the employee section. The further he sank, the more the air thickened quieter, but not kinder. He could already sense it. Faces would be waiting. Eyes. Laughter. Julian. Elodie.
The humiliation followed him like a shadow, but still, he walked.
The hum of keyboards and muted chatter was already restless when Kairen stepped into the employee section. The laughter that followed him was instant, a ripple of mockery chasing the janitor's uniform he was forced into. Elodie, never one to let a spectacle pass her by, tilted her head back with exaggerated dramatics and sang a line in a mocking, crooning tone, making the laughter double.
Julian heard it all but didn't lift his eyes from his screen. His fingers moved across the keyboard like nothing in the world existed beyond his monitor. But the air shifted he knew someone was coming closer.
"Kairen."
His name fell flat in the hum of the office, but Julian kept typing. The snickers around them burned louder. Still, Kairen pressed forward, stopping in front of Julian's desk. His voice cracked against the noise, raw and low.
"I'm sorry," Kairen said. "For earlier. The way I snapped. I was at my breaking point. I didn't mean to take it out on you."
The apology silenced some of the laughter, though Elodie hummed her cruel little song in the background like a soundtrack to his shame. Kairen swallowed, steadying himself, then added, "I shouldn't have talked to you like that. I'm… sorry."
Only then did Julian look up, his brows tight. He studied Kairen for a beat too long before sighing. "Why are you wearing this?" His voice was calm, but sharp with disbelief. "You looked fine this morning. Don't tell me this is… what, low self-esteem? Trying to humiliate yourself?"
The words pricked Kairen's raw nerves. His apology dissolved into a bitter laugh. "You really think I chose this?" His voice rose, sharper, cracking through the air. "Sebastian made me wear it. Said if I want my job, I keep wearing these rags."
The shift was immediate. The laughter died. Elodie's hands stilled on her keyboard, her smirk freezing before she smoothed her face into something neutral. A ripple of workers went back to clicking keys as if their lives depended on it, all suddenly focused, all pretending they hadn't heard a thing.
Julian's eyes darted over Kairen's shoulder, his hand making a small gesture under the desk stop talking. But Kairen was too wound up to see it.
"That son of a bitch," Kairen spat, heat blazing in his chest, "he's a devil!"
The room dropped into silence.
And then, from behind him, a smooth, cold voice cut through the stillness.
"Who's the devil?"
Kairen froze. His body locked as though the air itself had solidified around him. Slowly, he turned, and there he was.
Sebastian, standing just a few feet away, golden eyes lit with amusement, a predator who had walked right into the den of his own entertainment.
No one breathed. The entire floor seemed to collapse into stillness.