The elevator doors had barely closed behind Elena Blackwood when the atmosphere of the penthouse shifted. The air felt heavier, the silence sharper. Mia stood frozen near the sofa, unable to decide whether she should sit, walk, or simply breathe.
Adrian didn't move at first. He stared at the elevator as if expecting it to open again. When it didn't, he exhaled slowly—a controlled breath that barely hid the storm beneath it.
"Adrian," Mia whispered. "What just happened?"
He didn't answer immediately. Instead, he pressed his fingers to his forehead, as if steadying a headache that had been following him for years.
"She came earlier than I expected," he finally said.
"That wasn't just a visit," Mia said. "She came for a reason."
Adrian lowered his hand, his gaze locking onto hers. "She wanted to measure you."
Mia frowned. "Why?"
"Because," Adrian said, his voice tightening, "anyone who matters to me becomes her concern."
There was something in that sentence—something unspoken—that made Mia's chest tighten. She took a tentative step closer.
"You told me staying with you puts me in danger," she said. "But I didn't think… your family would be one of the threats."
Adrian's expression darkened. "She is not the threat. She is the reminder."
"Of what?"
"What my brother is capable of," he said. "And how easily he uses the people around me to strike."
Mia swallowed hard. "She thinks I'll break."
"She hopes you will," Adrian corrected. "It'll make things easier for her."
Mia lowered her gaze. "Why?"
Adrian hesitated a moment before answering. "Because she wants me focused on the war inside this company. Not on you."
Mia's stomach twisted. "So I'm a distraction."
He stepped closer, closing the distance between them in a way that braced her heartbeat.
"You're the only thing keeping me sane," he said. "That's why she wants you gone."
Mia felt her breath catch. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to react to the weight of those words.
Adrian took another step, now inches away. His voice softened.
"And she's right about one thing."
Mia looked up, startled. "About what?"
"You will be a target," he said. "You already are."
The memory of the man outside her mother's house flashed through her mind. The stillness. The way he didn't look at the car, but she felt him watching. Her skin prickled with fear.
"What do we do now?" she asked.
Adrian's jaw locked. "We protect your mother first. And then we find out who helped him enter the building."
"You still think someone inside is working with him?"
Adrian nodded. "There's no other way he could move this freely."
Mia hesitated, then whispered, "Do you have any idea who it might be?"
He didn't answer.
Instead, he walked to the glass wall that overlooked the city, his shoulders tense, his posture rigid. Mia followed slowly, stopping beside him.
"Adrian," she said gently. "If you know something… tell me."
He stared at the skyline for a long moment before speaking.
"There are four people with enough access to erase their own ID logs," he said. "Two of them wouldn't dare betray me."
"And the other two?"
"One is ambitious," Adrian said. "Willing to do anything to climb higher."
"And the last one?" Mia asked.
Adrian's voice grew colder. "The last one is loyal to someone else entirely."
Mia felt a chill travel down her spine. "Your brother."
Adrian nodded once, slowly.
Mia stepped closer. "Who is it?"
He didn't look at her when he answered.
"Carson," he said. "My father's former advisor."
Mia inhaled sharply. "But he's been working with you for years."
"And he's also the one who introduced my brother to the board when I took over," Adrian said. "He has influence. He has access. And he knows how to erase footprints."
Mia's mind raced. "Then why haven't you confronted him?"
Adrian finally turned toward her.
"Because I needed proof," he said. "And until now, I didn't have any."
"But now you do," Mia whispered. "The entry logs. The message. The timing."
Adrian nodded. "It's enough to make him panic."
Mia stepped closer. "What happens when he panics?"
"He makes mistakes," Adrian said softly. "And that's when we catch him."
Mia felt a heaviness in her chest. Everything was spiraling fast—faster than she had imagined. She had stepped into his life quietly, accidentally, without expecting anything. Now she stood in the middle of a storm that had been building around him for years.
"Adrian," she said, her voice trembling slightly, "your mother said something before she left."
Adrian's expression sharpened. "What?"
"She told me… if I ever feel trapped or afraid, I should go to her before I come to you."
His eyes darkened instantly. "Mia, don't trust anything she says."
"But why would she—?"
"Because she wants control," Adrian snapped, then immediately exhaled, softening his tone. "She doesn't hate you, Mia. But she hates what you mean to me."
Mia felt her throat tighten. "And what do I mean to you?"
Adrian looked at her for a long moment, something raw and unguarded in his eyes.
"More than I should admit," he said quietly.
Mia's heartbeat stuttered.
But before either of them could speak again, Adrian's phone vibrated sharply.
He checked the screen.
His expression hardened.
"What is it?" Mia asked.
He showed her.
A message.
A picture.
A picture of her mother through the living room window — taken minutes ago.
Mia's breath broke.
"No…" she whispered, her hands trembling.
Adrian closed the distance between them in one swift movement.
"Mia," he said, voice firm but steady. "Listen to me."
Her pulse hammered.
He held her shoulders gently.
"We move now," he said. "This time, we're not reacting."
She looked up, terrified. "What do you mean?"
"This time," Adrian said, eyes fierce, "we strike first."