Aria finished cleaning the executive floor long after midnight.
By then, her arms ached and the smell of detergent clung to her skin, but her expression remained unchanged. Calm. Blank. Obedient.
Exactly how they liked her.
She pushed her cart toward the elevator when voices drifted down the corridor again.
Too many voices.
She stopped.
"…the board is freaking out," a man said, laughing. "A mysterious investor just swallowed up a huge chunk of shares."
Aria lowered her head slightly and stood aside.
Employees walked past her without a second glance.
"Serves them right," another person replied. "But whoever it is must be insane. Going against the Ashford family?"
Selena's name again.
Aria's lips curved inward, just barely.
"They'll never win," a woman scoffed. "Miss Ashford basically runs the company already. She's untouchable."
Aria said nothing.
Untouchable was a word people liked to use before they fell.
The next evening, Aria returned to the building for her shift.
As usual, she changed into her cleaning uniform in the cramped staff room, ignoring the glances from the other cleaners. Some pitied her. Some looked down on her.
None of them mattered.
She pushed her cart onto the executive floor just as the elevator doors opened again.
Selena Ashford stepped out with two assistants trailing behind her.
Aria immediately moved to the side.
But Selena stopped.
Her gaze landed on the cleaning cart, then slowly lifted to Aria's face.
"Well," Selena drawled, crossing her arms, "you really are persistent."
Aria lowered her head. "Good evening, Miss Ashford."
Selena circled her slowly, heels clicking against the marble like a countdown.
"I heard you've been assigned to this floor permanently," Selena said. "Did you beg for it? Or was this the best HR could do for you?"
"I just follow my schedule," Aria replied.
Selena laughed. "Still pretending to be dignified? That's adorable."
One of the assistants covered her mouth, giggling.
Selena leaned closer, her voice dropping. "Do you know how embarrassing it is for me to see you here every night?"
Aria stayed silent.
"You used to dream about sitting in those offices," Selena continued, pointing toward the glass-walled executive suites. "And now look at you."
She glanced at the mop. "Cleaning other people's footprints."
Selena straightened and waved a manicured hand dismissively. "Make sure you clean the conference room thoroughly tonight. We're having an important meeting tomorrow."
"Yes, Miss Ashford."
Selena paused, eyes narrowing. "And wipe the chairs properly. I don't want them smelling like cheap detergent."
The assistants laughed again.
They walked away.
Aria exhaled slowly once they were gone.
Later that night, she cleaned the conference room Selena had pointed out.
Long table. Leather chairs. Screens still showing frozen slides from the day's meeting.
Aria wiped the surface carefully, her movements unhurried.
On the screen was a list of names.
Board members. Executives. Shareholders.
She recognized every one of them.
She knew which accounts were dirty.
Which signatures were forged.
Which smiles were fake.
Her phone vibrated softly in her pocket.
She ignored it.
This wasn't the time.
Near the end of her shift, Aria was refilling her bucket when a familiar voice spoke behind her.
"Still here?"
She froze.
Ethan Cole.
She turned slowly.
He stood a few steps away, sleeves rolled up, jacket draped over his arm. He looked tired but still arrogant.
"Yes, sir," Aria replied quietly.
He looked at her for a moment, his gaze sharp and uncomfortable.
"I heard you're working nights now," he said. "That must be… hard."
Aria nodded. "It's fine."
He hesitated, then scoffed lightly. "You should be grateful you still have a job."
Grateful.
"People like you don't get many chances," he added. "Don't cause trouble."
"I wouldn't," Aria said.
Ethan's gaze lingered on her for a second longer before he turned away.
"Good," he said. "Know your limits."
He walked off.
Aria watched his back disappear down the corridor.
Then she looked down at her hands.
Rough from work.
Steady.
Unshaking.
When the building finally fell silent, Aria entered the storage room and locked the door behind her.
Only then did she take out her phone.
Several messages waited for her.
She opened the latest one.
The board meeting is set. Pressure is rising.
They're making mistakes.
Aria typed a single reply.
Let them.
She slipped the phone away, picked up her cart, and stepped back into the hallway.
Tomorrow, she would still be the cleaner they looked down on.
And tomorrow night
She would clean a little closer to the top.