Chapter 2: The Deal With The Devil

POV: Lyra

The silence in Xavier’s office was so heavy that I could hear the rain tapping against the reinforced glass, but I didn't let my eyes wander back to the photograph on his desk, even though the sight of that little girl had sent a jolt of electricity through my spine. Xavier watched me with a look that suggested he was trying to figure out if I was a desperate woman or a brilliant spy, and he finally sat down in his chair, gesturing for me to do the same, though I remained standing.

"You’re asking for a lot, Lyra, and you’re doing it while you look like you just crawled out of a storm, so tell me why I shouldn't just call security and have them hand you back to Elias," he said, his voice smooth but dangerous, and he leaned back while crossing his arms over his chest.

"Because if you do that, you lose the chance to own the Aegis architecture before the sun comes up, and you know as well as I do that Elias can’t maintain that system without the master encryption key that is currently sitting inside my head," I told him, taking a step closer to the desk and resting my hands on the cold surface.

"I don't need a secretary, I have a dozen assistants who do exactly what I tell them to do, so why would I give you a desk in my inner circle just to get some code that I could probably hire a team to crack eventually?" he asked, but I could see the spark of genuine interest in his eyes that he was trying to hide.

"You won't crack it because I built it to self-destruct if anyone tries to force their way in without my specific clearance, and I’m not asking to be an assistant who gets you coffee, I’m asking to be your Executive Secretary because that position gives me the legal authority to sign documents and represent you in meetings where Elias will be present," I explained, watching him process the fact that I wasn't just looking for a paycheck, but a seat at the table where I could watch my ex-boyfriend crumble.

"You want protection too, which means you think he’s going to come after you once he figures out he’s holding a hollow shell of a company," Xavier noted, and he stood up to walk around the desk until he was standing directly in front of me, tall enough that I had to tilt my head back to keep eye contact.

"He will come after me because he thinks I’m his property, and because he knows that if I’m working for you, his empire is already dead, so I need your name and your resources to keep him at a distance while I dismantle his life piece by piece," I said, and for the first time since I walked in, I saw a small, dark smile tug at the corner of his mouth.

"I like that you aren't pretending to be a victim, Lyra, but if I do this, you belong to Thorne Industries, which means your hours are mine and your loyalty cannot have a single crack in it," he warned, his voice dropping an octave as he stepped into my personal space.

"I have nothing left to be loyal to, Xavier, my best friend is sleeping with my fiancé and my career was stolen an hour ago, so you are the only thing I have left to bank on," I replied, and the honesty in my voice seemed to satisfy him more than any technical explanation could have.

"Fine, I'll give you the position and the protection, but you should know that if you ever try to play both sides or if I find out you’re still talking to Elias, I won't just fire you, I will make sure you never find work in this industry again and I will personally see to it that you regret the day you walked into this building," he said, and he reached out a hand to seal the deal.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," I said, shaking his hand and feeling the warmth of his grip, which felt strangely grounded compared to the cold betrayal I had just walked away from.

"Good, now look at yourself, you can't walk into this office tomorrow looking like a broken-hearted runaway, so take my credit card and go to the apartment my driver is going to take you to, there will be a stylist there at six in the morning," he commanded, handing me a sleek black card.

"I don't need a stylist to tell me how to look professional, Xavier, I've been running a company for five years," I argued, but he just shook his head and looked me up and down with a critical eye.

"You were running a company from a basement lab while Elias took the credit, but tomorrow you are the face of my executive branch, and I want you to look like the woman who is about to take over the world, not the woman who just lost her boyfriend," he said, and I realized he was right about the psychological warfare we were about to start.

I spent the rest of the night in a high-rise apartment that was larger than my entire house, and when the sun began to rise, I sat in a chair while a team of people changed everything about my appearance, from the way my hair fell to the sharpness of my eyeliner. When I finally looked in the mirror, I didn't see the tired coder who took whatever crumbs Elias threw at her, I saw a stranger with a cold gaze and a wardrobe that cost more than my old annual salary.

I arrived back at Thorne Tower at eight sharp, and the staff who had ignored me the night before were now bowing their heads as I walked toward the private elevator in a charcoal suit and heels that sounded like gunshots against the marble floor. Xavier was already in his office, looking over some papers, and he didn't even look up until I stood in front of his desk.

"The transformation is adequate, Lyra, but don't forget that the clothes are just a shell, and I need the brain inside to be twice as sharp today," he said, finally looking up and pausing for a fraction of a second as he took in my new look.

"The brain is fine, Xavier, and I've already spent the morning mapping out the three clients Elias is most dependent on, so if we move quickly, we can pull their contracts before he even finishes his morning coffee with Chloe," I said, tossing a tablet onto his desk with the data already pulled up.

"You’re efficient, I’ll give you that, but there’s a meeting at ten o'clock that you need to be ready for, and it’s with a vendor who has a very close relationship with your former company," he said, watching me closely.

"I'm ready, but before we go, I want to know about the girl in the photo on your desk, because she looks exactly like someone I used to know," I said, deciding to push my luck while I had his attention.

Xavier’s face went completely still, his eyes turning into chips of ice as he stood up and slowly turned the photograph face down so I couldn't see it anymore.

"That is my daughter, Luna, and she is the only part of my life that is off-limits to you, so if you want this partnership to work, you will never mention her again or ask about her mother," he said, and the sudden shift in his energy made me realize that even though I was in his inner circle, there were secrets in this room that were far more dangerous than anything Elias had ever done.

"I understand," I whispered, but my heart was racing because the timing and the resemblance were too perfect to be a coincidence, and as the elevator dinged to signal we were leaving for the meeting, I wondered if I had just traded one monster for another.

The doors opened to the lobby where I saw a familiar car pulling up to the curb, and my breath caught as I saw Elias and Chloe stepping out, looking smug and successful, until Elias looked through the glass and his eyes landed d

irectly on me standing next to his greatest enemy.