Emillia

The first thing I did after stealing from him…was smile.

“Congratulations….”

Applause filled the boardroom as the billionaire CEO rose from his seat and extended his hand.

“Welcome to Blackwood Holdings.”

His voice was even. Controlled. The kind that revealed absolutely nothing.“You’ve earned this position.”

I slipped my hand into his. “Thank you, sir.”

He had no idea.

Less than twenty minutes earlier, while completing the final assessment on the company-issued laptop, I’d quietly copied confidential files and sent them to the one person who had waited ten years for this moment.

My father.

“I’m inside” That was the only message I’d sent.

His reply came almost instantly. “Good. Don’t disappoint me.”

I locked my phone before the guilt had a chance to settle.

This wasn’t betrayal. This was justice. I reminded myself

Lifting my gaze, our eyes met for first time

Adrian Ashford.

The man the business world admired. The man my father despised.

He slid one hand back into his pocket.

For a brief moment, his dark eyes studied mine before he gave a small, professional nod.

“Congratulations once again, Miss Carter. I expect great things from you.”

“Thank you, sir.” I forced a polite smile.

If only he knew…I wasn’t here to impress him, I was here to destroy everything he’d built.

I couldn’t help nothing something

For a man my father had described as a ruthless monster, he looked… painfully ordinary.

A tailored charcoal suit. A silver watch resting against his wrist. Not a single wrinkle on his expression.

This was the man?

Looks deceive. My father had reminded me of that countless times.

“Mr. Ashford?” One of the directors stepped forward, extending another file. “The contracts are ready for your signature.”

He accepted the file without another glance in my direction. “Please have Miss Carter report to the executive floor. Rachel will take over from there.”

“Of course, sir.”

The applause faded as executives drifted back into quiet conversations.

I picked up my handbag and followed the HR manager toward the door.

One step. Two. Three.

“Miss Carter.”

I stopped and turned.

He was already reading through the contracts.

He didn’t even look up. “You’ll be working directly under me.”

“I know.”

A brief silence.

“Good.”

That was all. He dismissed me with a slight flick of his wrist before returning his full attention to the documents in front of him.

Fine by me. The less he noticed me…the easier this would be.

The HR manager offered me a polite smile “This way, Miss Carter.”

—-

We stopped outside a bank of elevators.

He pressed the call button before turning to me with a professional smile.

“The executive floor is on the twenty-third floor.”

He handed me a temporary access card.

“Rachel, Mr. Ashford’s executive secretary, will meet you there and complete your onboarding.”

I nodded. “Thank you.”

The elevator doors slid open with a soft chime.

The moment they closed behind me, the tightness in my chest returned.

I reached into my handbag, pulled out my inhaler, and pressed it to my lips.

One breath. Then another.

Only after my heartbeat slowed did I lower it.

The vibration of my phone echoed through the silent elevator.

Dad.

I answered before the second ring. “I got the job.”

His chuckle was quiet. Satisfied. “I never doubted you. I told you would get the job.”

“You did”

Silence. Not the comforting kind; the kind that made my stomach tighten.

“What did you send?”

“The file you asked for.”

“Only one?”

I frowned. “That was all I could get without attracting attention.”

Another pause.

Then— “You’ll do better tomorrow.”

No I’m proud of you. No Are you alright? Just another order.

“I’ve barely been hired.”

“You have access now.”

“Dad—”

“Listen carefully, Emilia.” His voice sharpened. “You’re no longer an outsider. You’re inside the lion’s den. Every day you walk into that building, you bring us one step closer to taking back what’s ours.”

My grip tightened around the phone. “I understand.”

“I don’t think you do.”

He lowered his voice. “That man stole your future before you were old enough to understand what was taken from you. Don’t get carried away.”

“I won’t.”

“I raised you for this.”

Those five words settled heavily in my chest.

“I know.”

“You don’t need friends in that company. You don’t need loyalty. You certainly don’t need sympathy.” He exhaled, “You have one job…Destroy— him.”

The line went dead.

I stared at my reflection in the mirrored elevator doors. Then took a deep, slow breath fighting the urge to use my inhaler again

The elevator chimed.

Executive Floor.

The doors slid open.

A woman in a navy pencil skirt smiled politely. “You must be Miss Carter.”

“Yes.”

“I’m Rachel, Mr. Ashford’s executive secretary.”

She extended her hand. “Welcome to the most stressful job in London.”

I almost laughed.

“If you’re looking for an easy going boss…”

She stepped aside, revealing an entire floor of glass offices where employees hurried from one meeting to another. “…you accepted the wrong offer.”

Before I could answer, A loud crash echoed through the office.

A man in his forties stumbled out of the CEO’s office carrying a cardboard box.

His face was pale.

Two security guards walked behind him.

Nobody spoke. Nobody even looked at him.

Rachel sighed. “That was our Chief Financial Officer.”

“He was fired?”

“No.”

She glanced toward the closed office door. “He was escorted out.”

My brows knitted together. “For what?”

Rachel’s lips pressed into a thin line. “No one knows.”

She leaned closer. “But around here…Mr. Ashford doesn’t give second chances.”

My heartbeat slowed.

Maybe…Just maybe…My father had been right about him after all.

The entire executive floor had fallen silent.

Everyone kept their heads down as the man carrying the cardboard box disappeared into the elevator.

The doors closed.

Only then did the office breathe again.

Rachel turned to me. “Come.”

She started walking.

I hurried after her. “Does that happen often?” I asked quietly.

She didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she swiped her access card against a glass door.

Click.

“Mr. Ashford has one rule.”

“What is it?”

“Loyalty.”

I frowned.

“If he trusts you, he’ll move mountains for you.”

She pushed the door open. “But if you betray that trust…”

She glanced toward the elevator. “…you’ll never walk back into this building.”

I looked in the direction the former CFO had disappeared.

“So he fired him?”

Rachel stopped. “For stealing.”

My steps faltered. “What?”

“He’d been moving company funds into offshore accounts for almost two years.”

“…”

“The forensic auditors found everything yesterday.”

My throat tightened.

“He has a wife.Two daughters.” Rachel sighed. “Mr. Ashford paid their school fees through the company’s employee welfare program.”

I blinked. “What?”

“He also paid for the man’s wife’s cancer treatment.”

The words knocked the air from my lungs.

“And after all that…” Rachel’s expression hardened. “…he still stole from him.”

Silence settled between us.

That wasn’t what my father had described.

He’d called Adrian Ashford ruthless.Heartless. A man who enjoyed destroying lives.

But this…this sounded different.

No. I forced the thought away.

Monsters know how to wear masks. Dad said that too.