What do I want?

Zara 

“Promise me you are not going to that place alone.”

My best friend's voice echoed through my phone speaker as I stood in the kitchen, staring at nothing in particular. The morning felt too bright for how heavy my thoughts were. 

“There is no one to come with me, you are far away and you know I don’t like asking people for help.” I said 

“What about Alex?” She asked 

Alex was one of the diligent people in the company and he has been hitting on me for years. But I can’t be with someone who earns less money than I do. 

“You know I don’t want to be indebted to him. Besides I have told you everything and the man didn’t look scary. If for anything, he actually looked cute and his smile? Oh my god, it’s to die for.”

“And that’s why I’m panicking.” She shot back. “That’s more reasons why I should panic. A stranger is a stranger. He gives you his card and suddenly you are going to his office? Do you hear yourself?”

I exhaled slowly, putting down my shoe to hit the floor.

“I don’t really have a choice,” I say, my voice very calm now.

That made her go quiet for a second. And I hated that silence. Because it meant she understood…even when she didn’t want to. 

“What did he say to you again?” She asked 

“He said I was the one he had been looking for.” I answered 

Which doesn’t even make sense. He didn’t say anything after. The driver just asked for my address and took me to my house. 

All he did was stretch out his card to me and smiled. What the hell was he smiling for??

“This is how people end up in crime documentaries, you know that right?”

“I know. But doing nothing is worse.” 

They shut her up completely 

I picked up the card and looked at it. 

Black. Thick. Heavy 

Oliver Montague.

The company was collapsing. Debt was swallowing everything. Doors were closing faster than we could knock them. 

“Just…be careful,” she said finally. Her voice wasn’t loud anymore, just scared. 

“I will.” 

I hung up before she could say anything else. Because if I stayed on that call any longer I might actually lose the courage to leave. 

I picked up my shoe and put it on. I was wearing a pair of blue  jeans and a white tank top with a burgundy leather jacket to match my bag. I looked at the mirror and decided to tie my hair in a ponytail. 

———

The drive was longer than it should have.

Every street I passed looked like it was leading me somewhere I didn’t fully understand. Every turn felt like a quiet warning and I was ignoring it on purpose. My phone stayed in my hands the entire time just in case I needed to run.

When the car finally stopped, I looked up and my stomach tightened. The building didn’t look like an office. It looked like power pretending to be architecture.

Glass stretched too high reflecting the sky like it owned it. The name at the top was sharp and clean.

Cassian Holdings.

Which was different from what was in the card. 

People moved in and out with purpose. Not chaos—control. Even the air around the place felt structured. Like nothing unplanned was allowed inside. 

I swallowed

I picked up my phone and sent a text message to my best friend. 

I’m here now. Wish me luck.  XOXO 

——-

inside, everything felt too polished. The floors were so reflective I could see myself in them—smaller than I felt. The air was cold enough to swallow my thoughts. 

People glanced at me and looked away. Like I wasn’t important enough to hold their attention. I walked to the reception desk, forcing my voice to stay steady. 

“Good morning,” I said.

The receptionist looked up slowly.

“Yes?” 

“I have an appointment with Oliver Montague.”

Her fingers paused over her keyboard just a little too long. Her expression changed just slightly before she nodded. 

“Your name?” 

“Zara Edwards.” 

She typed once and then again.

“Top floor,” she said. “He’s expecting you.” 

——

The elevator door closed with a soft sound that felt too final. 

Floor numbers rose slowly. 

1….7…14…23…..

Each number felt like a step away from the life I use to understand. By the time I reached the top floor my palms were already slightly damped.

The elevator door opened and I stopped at a walkway. Very clean and quiet. A woman at the desk stood as soon as she saw me. 

“You can go in,” she said.

Like she has been waiting for me. 

I walked forward slowly. The doors to the office were slightly opened. I pushed slowly and stepped inside.

He was sitting by the window, not behind the desk. Just sitting there like the city outside mattered more than anything inside. 

When I entered, he turned slowly and I felt it immediately. That pressure. The kind that doesn’t need to be loud to be dangerous. 

“You are here.” He said finally with a smile.

“I came because you asked.” I said 

“Yes,” he said. “You did.”

He didn’t move immediately. He just watched me.

“Sit.” He said finally 

I hesitated for half a second before lowering myself into the chair opposite him. The space between us felt too intentional, like it had been measured. For a moment, neither of us spoke. He sat down finally on his chair and leaned forward. 

“What do you want right now?” He asked 

I blinked. My brain didn’t even process the question properly at first. 

“What?” 

“You heard me,” he said. “What do you want right now? Anything. Just make it and I’ll make it happen.” 

I stared at him. This wasn’t  business and neither was it a negotiation. It was something else entirely. His gaze did not leave mine. His expression was stern and something in my chest tightened because of that. 

“What do you want?” He asked again.