Nova Lines
1401 Words
LIORA’S POV
The oak door felt heavier than I remembered. The metal plate that read Harold Bennett & Associates, Corporate Law looked the same as it did when my father was alive, but the office smelled older. The air was full of dust and old papers.
“Miss Holt,” Harold said as he stood up. His voice was stiff, the same way it had always been when I was younger. “It has been a long time.”
“Too long,” I said, keeping my tone cool as I closed the door. “Let’s skip the small talk, Harold.”
His mouth twitched like he wanted to smile. “You still speak your mind. Just like your father.”
I sat across from him. “I’m here about the contract. You already know that.”
He straightened his glasses. “I assumed that would be the reason for your visit.”
“Good. Then let’s not waste time.”
He let out a slow breath. “Your father’s arrangements were complicated. His goal was to protect you.”
“Protect?” My voice rose. “Is that what you call forcing me into a marriage with someone I have never even met? All so I can keep the company I helped build?”
Harold did not react. “Your father expected difficult times for Holt Designs. All he did was to ensure that the company would survive times like this.”
“By treating me like a bargaining chip?”
“By ensuring stability,” he replied. “I figure you are here to know the man in question. I feel for you, but the contract has a confidentiality clause. I am not allowed to reveal the other party’s identity.”
I leaned forward, gripping the edge of the desk. “You have known me my whole life. You watched me bury my father. You know what this company means to me. If you think hiding behind legal terms is helping, it isn’t. It is tearing everything apart.”
For the first time, something shifted in his expression. Maybe guilt. Maybe sympathy. “Liora, I understand how you feel, but I cannot break the terms. You will know the truth when the conditions are met.”
“When the conditions are met?” I stared at him. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“When the time your father set arrives. Until then, no one can reveal the groom’s identity. Not even me.”
I let out a breath of disbelief. “How convenient for everyone but me.”
I pushed back from the chair. “You sit in this office with your perfect desk and your framed certificates while my company is falling apart. And you think keeping one name secret will fix anything?”
He said quietly, “Sometimes not knowing protects a person, Miss Holt.”
“Protects me from what exactly?”
He hesitated.
“From what, Harold?”
His eyes dropped to the papers in front of him. “Some things were meant to be revealed at a certain time.”
The answer made my chest tighten with anger. “You sound exactly like my father. Always vague, always controlling, always believing you are doing me a favor.”
He did not respond.
I walked out and shut the door hard enough to shake the frame.
The drive back to the office passed in a blur. By the time I stepped into Holt Designs, the sky outside had turned a dull gray. My assistant looked nervous as soon as she saw me.
“Ms. Holt,” she said quickly. “The CFO is in your office. He says it is urgent.”
“Of course, he does,” I muttered, heading toward my office.
Charles was standing by the window when I entered. He didn’t turn right away. That never meant anything good.
“Tell me,” I said.
He finally faced me. “Our main investor, Kings Ventures, pulled out this morning. They said it was because of Cross’s comments.”
Cold washed over me. “How much are we losing?”
“A lot,” he said. “We don’t have enough to cover payroll.”
The words hit my stomach like a punch. “Are you telling me we can’t pay our staff?”
He nodded. “I am sorry, but we can’t, even this month, not unless we get money immediately. I have checked for loans and extensions, but nothing will come through fast enough. We are out of time.”
I pressed my fingers into my forehead. “So, what do you want me to do?”
“There is one possible move,” he said carefully. “Sell the Nova Line design to Axis Atelier. They are offering good money.”
My chest tightened. “That is my design, Charles. My work.”
“I know. But if we skip payroll, people will panic. Competitors will smell blood. It will destroy us.”
I looked out the window. Raindrops blurred the city lights. “Axis will ruin it. They will change everything and claim it as their own.”
He didn’t argue.
I started pacing. “No. I won’t do it.”
“Liora…”
“I said no,” I snapped. “Selling the Nova Line means giving up a part of myself. My father is gone. The board wants me out. Cross is waiting for me to fall. I will not hand them the victory they want.”
Charles lowered his voice. “Then we should hope for a miracle.”
The miracle never came.
Around noon, a video of Damian leaving a luxury hotel went viral. He looked relaxed, almost pleased, while reporters shouted at him about my company.
He only said one line.
“Sometimes a company breaks under the weight of its own name.”
That was enough.
By afternoon, business media picked it up. Anonymous accounts online claimed the company was collapsing. People predicted layoffs. Investor panic grew.
The stock dropped by fifteen percent.
I sat alone in my office, staring at headline after headline.
CROSS STRIKES HOLT DESIGNS
THE HOLT ERA MAY BE ENDING
Another message from the board chair popped onto my screen.
“If payroll is missed, we will need to discuss temporary leadership.”
I wanted to throw my phone, but I only gripped it harder.
“Damian Cross,” I whispered. “You want control so badly, you’ll ruin everything in your way.”
But anger could not save jobs. It could not steady the company.
Night set in. I stayed in my office.
At some point, Ivy came in, holding a brown envelope. “Ms. Holt, you need to see this.”
My name was written on the front in neat handwriting.
“What is it?”
“No sender listed,” she said.
I opened it. Inside was a wire transfer confirmation.
Amount: $1,840,000
Recipient: Holt Designs Payroll Account
Sender: Confidential Benefactor
A chill ran through me.
Behind it was a small cream card. Heavy, expensive paper. Embossed gold. A crest with two rings wrapped in laurel leaves.
No name.
No message.
Just the symbol.
My heart thudded hard.
“Who brought this?” I asked.
Ivy shook her head. “Security said a courier dropped it off. No name.”
“Check the cameras.”
“They did. The footage glitched for a full minute around the delivery.”
I felt my pulse race.
“Do you think it is from…” she began.
“Don’t say it,” I whispered. “Please don’t.”
The timing was too perfect. Too clean.
Payroll saved. The company stabilized for now.
But I could not ignore the truth.
Only one group had both the reason and the money to do this.
The family behind the arranged marriage.
If they thought I was desperate enough to accept help…
Then maybe Harold was right. Maybe the “appointed time” had already started.
Outside, the city lights blurred through the windows. Damian’s face flashed across the news screens, but I barely saw it.
My eyes stayed fixed on the crest with the intertwined rings.
It sat on my desk like a quiet claim.
And I realized something simple and terrifying.
Ignorance did not protect me.
It only kept me from noticing the leash around my neck.
- Writer
