The Fire Beneath the Glass
691 Words
Chapter Four
EVELYN
My father’s office smelled like cigar smoke and secrets.
He sat behind his mahogany desk, the city skyline glowing behind him. The man looked every bit the king he believed himself to be — tailored suit, silver cufflinks, calm smile that never reached his eyes.
“Evelyn,” he said, gesturing to the chair opposite him. “You’ve been busy.”
I froze. “What do you mean?”
He tapped the folder on his desk — my folder. The one I had hidden in my apartment. The one that had vanished this morning.
My stomach dropped. “Where did you get that?”
“Marco found it,” he said smoothly. “You’ve been snooping.”
“I was trying to understand—”
“You were trying to betray me.”
His voice was quiet, but the venom underneath it was unmistakable.
“I wasn’t—”
“Do you know what happens to people who dig too deep, Evelyn?” he asked, leaning forward. “They drown.”
I swallowed hard. “Then maybe you shouldn’t build your empire underwater.”
For a moment, silence.
Then he laughed low, dangerous, proud. “You sound just like your mother.”
It wasn’t a compliment.
He stood, walking to the window. “You’ll stay out of business matters from now on. I’ll have Marco keep an eye on you.”
I clenched my fists. “You mean watch me.”
He turned, eyes cold. “Same thing.”
I wanted to scream. To throw the folder at him. To demand answers.
But then I saw something — a reflection in the glass behind him.
A car parked across the street. Black. Sleek. Familiar.
Alexandro Valenti’s car.
My breath caught.
He was watching.
Again.
And for reasons I couldn’t explain, that terrified me less than it should have.
---
ALEXANDRO
I shouldn’t have been there.
Watching her through the tinted glass like a ghost. But I needed to see how far she’d go — how deep she’d dig — before her father realized she was unraveling his empire from the inside.
She didn’t disappoint.
Even from across the street, I could see the tension in her shoulders, the way she stood her ground against Lorenzo Rossi. Brave. Reckless. Beautiful.
Nico shifted in the driver’s seat. “You’re getting too close.”
“I’m gathering information.”
“You’re getting attached.”
I didn’t answer.
He wasn’t wrong.
Evelyn Rossi was a problem — one I should have eliminated the moment she found my signature. But something about her made me hesitate.
Maybe it was the way she looked at me — not with fear, but with defiance.
Maybe it was the way she made me feel human again.
And that was dangerous.
Because in my world, humanity was weakness.
I watched her father’s silhouette move behind the glass, his gestures sharp, his voice raised. Evelyn didn’t flinch. She never did.
“She’s going to get herself killed,” Nico muttered.
“Not if I can help it.”
He turned to me, incredulous. “You’re protecting her now?”
I stared at the building. “No.”
But the lie tasted bitter.
Because the truth was simple:
I didn’t know if I wanted to protect her… or destroy her.
---
EVELYN
When I left my father’s office, the night air felt heavier than before.
Marco followed me to the car, silent, watchful.
“Your father’s worried,” he said.
“About me or about his secrets?”
He didn’t answer.
I slid into the driver’s seat, gripping the wheel until my knuckles turned white. My reflection in the mirror looked like someone else — someone caught between two worlds.
And then I saw him.
Across the street. Leaning against a black car. Watching me.
Alexandro Valenti.
I didn’t know whether to run or walk straight toward him.
So I did neither.
I started the engine and drove away.
But in the mirror, his car followed.
Not close enough to be obvious.
Just close enough to remind me that I wasn’t free.
And maybe… I didn’t want to be.
- Writer
