The Devil's First Rule
1713 Words
Chapter Two: The Devil's First Rule
“She's inside.”
The message had been sent less than a minute after Elena Marlowe signed the contract.
Across the city, someone was already preparing for her arrival.
But Elena knew nothing about that.
All she could think about was the man sitting behind the enormous black desk in front of her.
Damian Cross.
He looked perfectly comfortable in his expensive suit, as though the world existed merely to obey him. His expression revealed nothing, but his eyes followed Elena with an unsettling intensity.
She had signed the contract.
She had accepted the job.
And she had just placed herself inside the one company she suspected might be connected to her brother's death.
“What exactly did Daniel steal from you?” she asked.
Damian leaned back in his chair.
“Curiosity is an expensive habit, Miss Marlowe.”
“So is hiring someone and refusing to tell them what they're getting into.”
A faint smile touched his lips.
“You have a sharp tongue.”
“And you have a talent for avoiding questions.”
For the first time, something resembling amusement crossed his face.
Then it disappeared.
“Your brother worked for people he didn't understand. He discovered something he shouldn't have discovered, and he made a decision that cost him his life.”
Elena's fingers curled into fists.
“You told me you know who killed him.”
“I do.”
“Then tell me.”
“No.”
She stared at him in disbelief.
“Are you serious?”
“Completely.”
“You expect me to work for you while you sit there holding the answer to my brother's death?”
“I expect you to do your job.”
“And what is my job, exactly?”
Damian opened a drawer and removed a slim black folder.
He pushed it across the desk.
“Starting tomorrow, you'll work directly under me. You'll have access to selected company records, attend private meetings, and assist with projects that require discretion.”
Elena opened the folder.
Her job description was unusually vague. The salary was almost three times what she had expected, and the benefits were generous enough to make her suspicious.
At the bottom of the final page was a clause she hadn't noticed before.
The employee agrees to maintain strict confidentiality regarding all matters connected to the employer, his family, and designated private investigations.
She looked up.
“Private investigations?”
“Some matters require discretion.”
“Like my brother?”
Damian's expression hardened.
“Especially your brother.”
Elena shut the folder.
“I want the truth, Damian.”
It was the first time she'd used his name.
Something shifted in his gaze.
“Then learn to listen before you speak.”
He stood and walked towards the window. Far below, the city glittered beneath the evening sky.
“Your brother wasn't the innocent man you remember.”
Elena rose so quickly that her chair scraped against the floor.
“Don't you dare talk about him like that.”
“Daniel stole confidential information from my company.”
“Maybe he found something illegal.”
“Perhaps.”
The unexpected answer stopped her.
Damian turned to face her.
“He was frightened during his final weeks. He contacted someone inside this building and asked for protection. Two days later, he was dead.”
Elena felt the room tilt.
“Why didn't you tell the police?”
“I did.”
“And?”
“They decided it was an accident.”
Her throat tightened.
She remembered the funeral. The official report. The unanswered questions. The way people had encouraged her to accept what she couldn't change.
“You could have told me this before I signed.”
“You wouldn't have believed me.”
“You don't know what I would have believed.”
“No,” he said quietly. “But I know what people do when they're desperate for answers.”
Elena hated that his words struck so close to home.
She picked up the folder.
“Fine. I'll do the job. But don't mistake that for trust.”
“I wouldn't dream of it.”
She reached the door before his voice stopped her.
“One more thing, Miss Marlowe.”
She turned.
“Never enter the west wing of this building without my permission.”
“Why?”
“Because I said so.”
Elena gave him a cold smile.
“That's not a reason.”
“It's the only one you're getting.”
She left before he could see how badly her hands were shaking.
The office assigned to Elena was on the twenty-third floor.
It was smaller than Damian's, but the glass walls overlooked the city, and everything inside looked brand new. A laptop sat on the desk beside a company phone and a neat stack of documents.
A woman in a charcoal-grey dress entered carrying a tablet.
“You must be Elena.”
“Yes.”
“I'm Camille Reed, Mr Cross's executive assistant. I'll help you settle in.”
Elena shook her hand.
“Thank you. How long have you worked here?”
“Six years.”
“And you know Damian well?”
Camille's smile became carefully neutral.
“I know how to do my job.”
Elena recognised the warning beneath the polite words.
Before she could ask another question, Camille placed a security card on the desk.
“This grants you access to your office and the main business floors. Keep it with you at all times. If you lose it, report it immediately.”
“What about the west wing?”
Camille froze.
Only for a second, but Elena noticed.
“Who told you about that?”
“Mr Cross.”
Camille collected her tablet.
“Then you should follow his instructions.”
She left without another word.
Elena waited until the door closed before examining her new phone.
One unread message appeared.
Unknown Number: You shouldn't have accepted the job.
Her stomach tightened.
She typed, Who is this?
The reply arrived immediately.
Unknown Number: Someone who tried to save Daniel.
Elena's breath caught.
What happened to my brother?
Three dots appeared, vanished, then appeared again.
Unknown Number: Find the security footage from October 12. Don't trust Cross. And whatever you do, don't let him discover you have the photograph.
Elena stared at the screen.
The photograph.
She had kept the picture of Daniel entering Damian's car hidden in the inner pocket of her handbag. Nobody knew she had it.
Nobody.
A final message arrived.
Unknown Number: He already knows you're looking for it.
The office suddenly felt too quiet.
Elena locked her phone and reached for her handbag.
The photograph was still there.
But something else had appeared beside it.
A small white envelope.
She was certain it hadn't been there when she arrived.
Her fingers trembled as she opened it.
Inside was a photograph of Daniel standing beside a woman Elena had never seen before. His expression was serious, almost frightened. The woman was looking away from the camera, her face partly hidden beneath a dark hat.
On the back, someone had written:
VIVIENNE HALE — THE WOMAN WHO DISAPPEARED BEFORE DANIEL DIED.
Elena had heard the name before. Vivienne Hale had been Damian Cross's former fiancée, a woman who had vanished from public view after their engagement ended.
Why had Daniel been with her?
And why had someone placed this photograph in Elena's office?
The door opened.
Elena shoved the envelope into her handbag.
Damian stood in the doorway.
His eyes moved to the bag, then to her face.
“Settling in?”
“Perfectly.”
He stepped inside and closed the door behind him.
“Good. Because we have a problem.”
“What problem?”
Damian placed a document on her desk.
It was a printed image from a security camera. Daniel stood beside a black car, his face clearly visible.
Elena recognised the vehicle immediately.
It was the same car from the photograph she had hidden.
Damian looked directly at her.
“This footage was deleted three years ago. Someone has just accessed the original file.”
Elena forced herself to remain still.
“Why are you telling me?”
“Because the person who accessed it used your new employee credentials.”
Her blood turned cold.
“I didn't access anything.”
“I know.”
That answer frightened her more than an accusation would have.
Damian moved closer.
“Someone inside this company wants you to believe I killed your brother. Someone else wants you dead before you discover the truth.”
Elena lifted her chin.
“And which one are you?”
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then he leaned towards her, his voice low.
“That's the question you should be most afraid to answer.”
He turned to leave.
“Damian.”
He stopped.
“Did you love Vivienne Hale?”
His expression changed.
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
“Who told you that name?”
Elena said nothing.
Damian slowly turned back towards her.
“Whatever you found, give it to me.”
“No.”
His jaw tightened.
“Elena, this is not a game.”
“Neither is my brother's death.”
They stared at each other, neither willing to surrender.
Then Damian's phone rang.
He answered without taking his eyes off her.
“What?”
A voice spoke urgently through the receiver.
Damian's expression became murderous.
“When?”
A pause.
“Secure the building. Nobody leaves.”
He ended the call.
Elena's heart began to race.
“What happened?”
Damian looked at her.
“There's been a security breach.”
“Here?”
“No.”
He stepped closer, his voice barely above a whisper.
“At your apartment.”
Elena felt the blood drain from her face.
“What about it?”
Damian's eyes held hers.
“Someone has broken in.”
He paused.
“And they left a message.”
“What message?”
His next words shattered the little control she had left.
“They wrote your brother's name in blood on your bedroom wall.”
End of Chapter Two
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