Chapter 7

Michael pressed the button for the eighty-fifth floor.

As the elevator doors closed, I glanced at the digital display above us.

One hundred and four floors.

Eighty-five floors just to reach an office?

I leaned slightly toward the glass panel, watching the numbers climb.

The higher the floor, the more important the person, I suppose.

My eyes drifted toward the uppermost floors.

If I were the owner of a building like this, I'd probably keep my penthouse at the very top. Imagine waking up to that view every morning.

For a moment, I allowed myself to indulge in the fantasy.

A beautiful apartment. Floor-to-ceiling windows. A quiet morning with a cup of coffee and no one demanding anything from me.

No enemies.

No betrayals.

No blood on my hands.

The thought vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

I had no time to indulge in dreams that belonged to another life.

Not yet.

The elevator doors opened.

A fresh fragrance greeted me as we stepped into the executive area, a delicate blend of lilies and jasmine. The atmosphere was noticeably quieter than the lobby, and everything appeared meticulously arranged.

I followed Michael down the corridor.

Several men passed us along the way. They wore dark suits and maintained disciplined postures, their expressions alert and their movements economical.

Something about them caught my attention.

They didn't move like ordinary office employees.

Their shoulders were too squared, their eyes too observant. Even when they appeared relaxed, they seemed aware of everything happening around them.

Security personnel, perhaps.

Highly trained ones.

Interesting.

I had spent enough time around dangerous people to recognize certain habits. You didn't need a weapon in your hand to reveal that you knew how to use one.

I lowered my gaze before anyone noticed my scrutiny.

I was here for a job, not an investigation.

At least, that was what I intended everyone to believe.

Michael led me into a spacious interview room and gestured toward a chair.

“Please make yourself comfortable, Ms. Monace.”

He placed several sheets of paper in front of me, along with a laptop.

“We'll begin with a short questionnaire, followed by a practical assessment. You'll be asked to complete a few tasks in Word and Excel, then prepare a brief presentation. Take your time.”

I glanced at the materials.

“Understood.”

The questionnaire was straightforward. The practical assessment was even easier.

Word formatting, spreadsheet functions, organizing information, preparing a presentation.

Nothing particularly challenging.

I had managed far more complicated operations in my previous life. Compared with coordinating shipments across hostile territories, a spreadsheet was practically a vacation.

I finished everything in less than thirty minutes.

When Michael returned to collect the documents, he stopped beside my desk and stared at the completed work.

“You've finished already?”

I looked up.

“Yes. Was I supposed to take longer?”

He blinked, then laughed softly.

“No, of course not. I'm just surprised. Most candidates need considerably more time.”

I smiled.

“Perhaps the questions were particularly kind to me today.”

Michael studied my work again.

Everything was organized, accurate, and neatly presented. There were no unnecessary details, no careless errors, and no wasted words.

“Very impressive, Ms. Monace.”

“Thank you.”

He gathered the papers and closed the laptop.

“Would you mind waiting here for a little while? I'll need to submit your assessment for review.”

“Not at all.”

After he left, silence settled over the room.

I turned toward the enormous windows.

New York stretched beneath me in a magnificent sea of glass and steel. Sunlight glinted off skyscrapers, while tiny vehicles moved along the streets far below.

For several minutes, I simply admired the view.

This is the kind of office I dreamed of when I was younger.

A real office. A legitimate business. A place where I could build something without constantly looking over my shoulder.

Ironically, the empire I'd built before had operated from discreet locations, deliberately hidden from public attention. Visibility had been a liability. The more people knew about my operations, the more vulnerable everything became.

I had once possessed money, influence, and an entire network of people who would answer my calls.

Now, I was sitting alone in an interview room, hoping to secure an ordinary job.

Life had a peculiar sense of humor.

I pressed my fingertips against the windowsill and took a slow breath.

This is a new beginning, Sevra.

I would rebuild my finances. I would uncover the person who had betrayed me. And when I finally discovered the truth, I would make certain that no one could ever take everything from me again.

I had lost my empire.

I hadn't lost my mind.

Nor had I forgotten how to fight.