Romane von Lira Hart

‎No one spoke. The air felt frozen ‎Alessio stood at the doorway. Roman stood between Elias and the exit. Elias stood with his back to the sink, caged.‎Three seconds. That was all it took for the bathroom to almost become a battlefield.‎Roman spoke first. “Knock next time, brother.”‎Alessio didn’t look at him. His eyes were on the way Elias's hands were white-knuckled against the porcelain. ‎“I don’t knock in my house,” Alessio said. His voice was low with a quiet rage in it. “Especially when something of mine is missing from the table.”‎Something. Not someone.‎Elias stilled. His stomach lurched at the way‎Alessio referred to him. ‎Roman smirked lightly.“He’s not a fork, Alessio. You can’t just claim him.”‎Alessio stepped inside. The door stayed open behind him.‎“He works for me,“ Alessio's gaze never left Roman. "That's all you need to remember.“‎Elias finally found his voice. “Excuse me, I’m—”‎“Quiet.” Alessio didn’t

‎‎The dining room smelled like rosemary and gun oil.‎Elias had already seen several cameras between the front door and the dining room. Multiple guards lined up.‎There was no way he could leave without Alessio knowing. He stood behind Alessio’s chair.‎His hands clasped, suddenly Alessio pulled his wrist, sitting him down on a chair. ‎The document was gone, Alessio had already slid it into his pocket without checking.‎Elias could still feel where it had been hidden, though there was nothing there now. Nothing except Alessio’s eyes on him, as though he were still searching for something else Elias might be hiding. ‎“Elias sits with me,” Alessio said. His voice was flat. ‎"Alessio, he isn't family,“ Aunt Marisol mentioned with a sharp tone.‎Alessio adjusted his cuffs without saying anything. ‎Vito Moretti cleared his throat. Aunt Marisol looked at towards him trying to say something, his cold face made Aunt Marisol's words die in her throat

‎The car pulled onto the main road, merging smoothly into the morning traffic. ‎For a while, no one spoke. ‎I looked out the window before turning to Enzo. ‎"So... how long have you worked for Mr. Moretti?" ‎"A few years." ‎I nodded. ‎"Do you always go with him to meetings like this?" ‎"Most of them." ‎I was about to ask another question when Mr. Moretti's voice came from behind us. ‎"Focus on the road, Enzo." ‎His tone was cold. ‎Enzo's eyes lifted to the rearview mirror. ‎For a brief moment, they met Dante's cold gray eyes staring back at him. ‎"Yes, Boss." ‎Enzo immediately returned his attention to the road. ‎The car fell silent again. ‎I looked back out the window as the city gradually gave way to quieter streets. ‎A short while later, the car rolled to a stop. ‎Enzo switched off the engine and stepped out first. I followed behind Mr. Moretti, stopping for a moment to look at the building in front of us. ‎It was... nice. ‎Really nice. ‎The kind of place rich p

‎The announcement had barely ended before the HR manager appeared beside my desk carrying another folder. ‎"Mr. Hart." ‎I looked up hopefully. ‎"Is Mr. Moretti here already?" ‎"The CEO has another task for you." He handed me the folder. "He wants these files taken to the records department downstairs." ‎I stared at him. ‎"... Right now?" ‎"I'm afraid so." ‎I glanced toward the executive floor. Somewhere up there, the Vice CEO had just arrived. The entire office had spent the whole day whispering about him, and now that he was finally here... ‎I was being sent downstairs. ‎"...Of course I am," I muttered. ‎The HR manager smiled politely, completely ignoring my suffering. ‎"The files are in the storage room." ‎With a sigh, I headed toward the records room. The moment I stepped inside, I stopped in front of a trolley stacked with folders. ‎"...You've got to be kidding me." ‎There had to be at least thirty of them. ‎I glanced around. ‎No one else was there. ‎"...Fine." ‎

‎The following morning, something felt... off. ‎The moment I stepped into Moretti Corporation, I noticed it. The office looked the same as always, but the people didn't. Conversations were quieter than usual. Every now and then, someone glanced toward the elevators before quickly looking away. It was as if everyone was waiting for something. ‎I set my bag on my desk and looked around. Even Marie hadn't complained about me being late by two minutes or breathing too loudly. That alone was enough to make me suspicious. Caleb wasn't any better. He kept checking the time before looking toward the elevators again. After the fifth time, I gave up pretending not to notice and walked over to his desk. ‎"Did I miss something?" ‎Caleb looked up, but before he could answer, Marie spoke first. ‎"If you spent half as much time working as you do asking questions, maybe you'd know." ‎She snorted, picked up a folder from her desk and walked away without another glance. ‎I rolled my eyes then loo

‎The smell of coffee drifted through the apartment. ‎I sat on the edge of Lucas's couch, staring into the mug warming my hands. I hadn't taken a single sip. ‎"You going to work?" ‎I looked up. Lucas leaned against the kitchen counter, watching me. ‎"...I have to." ‎He sighed before walking over and placing a folded envelope on the coffee table. ‎"You look like shit." ‎"I've looked worse." ‎"Take it." ‎I didn't need to look inside to know what it was. ‎"...No." ‎"Elias." ‎"I can't." ‎"It won't solve everything," he said quietly, "but it'll help your mum." ‎My fingers twitched toward the envelope before curling into a fist. ‎"You've already helped me enough." ‎Lucas studied me for a moment, then shook his head. ‎"You're too stubborn for your own good." ‎A small laugh escaped me. ‎"So I've been told." ‎He walked me to the door. ‎"If things get worse... tell me." ‎"I'll try." ‎As I stepped into the hallway, I glanced back one last time. ‎The envelope was still on th