Chapter Three — The Secrets Beneath
1098 Words
The next morning, I wake up before my alarm — something that hasn’t happened in years.
For a full minute I just lie there, staring at the email glowing on my phone screen.
Carter Industries 2012.
My parents’ company. The one everyone said collapsed under debt and bad management.
The one that took everything from us before the accident.
My throat feels tight. There are so many questions twisting in my head that I can barely breathe.
Why does Alexander Knight have these files?
And more importantly — what does he want with me?
---
By the time I reach the office, I’ve convinced myself of three things:
1. I can’t confront him. Not yet.
2. I’ll find out what he knows first.
3. I’ll act like nothing’s wrong.
The acting part is harder than it sounds. Every time I see him, every time he says Miss Carter in that calm, clipped tone, my stomach twists with suspicion and something else — something dangerously close to fascination.
“Morning,” Claire greets me at the reception desk as I pass. “You look… determined.”
“Just caffeinated,” I lie, forcing a smile.
She laughs. “You’ll need it. Mr. Knight’s in one of his moods today.”
Perfect. Just what I needed.
---
The day unfolds like a test I didn’t study for.
Meetings, phone calls, appointments, calendar edits — it’s like the company never sleeps, just hums relentlessly under Alex’s control.
Every time I glance through the glass wall into his office, he’s there — focused, composed, a storm contained in a suit.
It’s hard to imagine someone like him ever losing control of anything.
I wait until lunch break before sneaking into the digital archive system from my desk. It’s a long shot, but maybe I can find that Carter Industries folder in the company’s internal network — maybe figure out why he sent it.
My fingers shake slightly as I type.
Search: Carter Industries.
Several results pop up — all marked confidential, all dated between 2010 and 2013.
My pulse quickens.
I click one.
A corporate acquisition file. Legal records.
Knight Industries bought several smaller manufacturing firms that year… including one registered under Carter Holdings Ltd.
My family’s name again.
My parents’ company hadn’t gone bankrupt — it had been acquired.
Swallowed whole.
---
“Busy morning?”
I nearly jump out of my chair. Alex is standing right behind me, hands in his pockets, voice low and casual — which somehow makes it worse.
“Mr. Knight,” I gasp, slamming my laptop shut like a guilty teenager. “I— I was just—”
“Working?” he supplies, stepping closer. “Good. I’d hate to think I’m paying you to browse.”
His tone is unreadable, but his eyes flick toward my laptop for half a second — like he already knows what I was looking at.
Does he?
I swallow hard. “Of course. Just… checking the calendar for Friday.”
“Good.” He studies me for a beat too long, then adds softly, “You seem distracted today.”
I force a laugh. “Just trying to keep up.”
He doesn’t believe me. I can tell. But instead of pushing, he straightens and says, “Come to my office. We’re reviewing a new proposal.”
I nod, trying to ignore the way my palms are sweating.
---
His office smells faintly of cedar and espresso.
He’s pacing when I enter, jacket off, sleeves rolled up. It’s disarming — seeing him like this, less armor, more human.
“Sit,” he says. “We’ll go over the Chen proposal. They want to partner on a logistics expansion.”
I take notes while he talks, pretending to listen. But my mind keeps circling back to those files. To the name Carter. To the fact that this man might know more about my family’s destruction than anyone left alive.
He stops mid-sentence. “Miss Carter.”
I blink. “Sorry — what?”
His lips twitch. “You’ve been staring at the same line on that page for five minutes.”
“Oh.” My face burns. “Right. Sorry.”
“Don’t apologize.” He leans back against his desk, arms crossed. “Tell me what’s distracting you.”
I open my mouth, then close it again. The truth is clawing at my throat, but I’m not ready to let it out. Not until I know what game he’s playing.
“Nothing,” I say finally. “Just… long night.”
He studies me quietly, and for once there’s no judgment in his eyes — just something soft, almost concerned. “Your grandmother’s house. Still having trouble keeping it?”
I stare at him. “How do you—?”
“Background checks,” he says simply. “I vet everyone who works here.”
Of course he does.
Still, there’s something unsettling about how easily he says it. Like knowing the most intimate parts of someone’s life is just business to him.
But then his tone shifts — lower, almost gentle. “If you’re struggling, talk to HR. They can assist.”
I almost laugh. “You mean the department that makes you sign a nondisclosure every time you sneeze?”
A ghost of a smile crosses his face. “Point taken.”
For a moment, the air between us feels different — less like a battlefield, more like a truce. His expression softens just enough to make me wonder if the man underneath all that control might actually care.
And that’s dangerous. Because if he does, I might start to forgive him before I even know what he’s done.
---
He dismisses me an hour later, and I walk out of his office feeling even more confused than when I walked in.
He’s not what I expected. Ruthless, yes. Cold, absolutely. But there’s something else — something tired in his eyes when he thinks no one’s looking.
Back at my desk, I reopen my laptop.
One more search. Just one.
This time, I dig deeper — past the public records, into the archived emails.
And that’s when I see it: an old message dated October 12, 2012.
From: evelyn.knight@knightindustries.com
To: alex.knight@knightindustries.com
Subject: Carter Acquisition — urgent
> “Proceed quietly. The Carters can’t know we’re moving in until the board finalizes. Their assets will fall under
our umbrella within weeks. Handle it cleanly.”
My blood runs cold.
He knew.
Or at least, he was there when it happened.
And now, he’s my boss.
- Writer
