CHAPTER 9: THE TEST
295 Words
That evening, Luca didn’t call her.
He summoned her.
The difference mattered.
The room was dim when she entered.
No guests.
No distractions.
Just him.
And Enzo.
Standing slightly behind him.
Waiting.
That alone was enough to tighten Elize’s instincts.
“You asked for me,” she said.
Luca didn’t look up immediately.
He was reading something.
Calm.
Unhurried.
“Sit,” he said.
Elize didn’t move.
“I’m fine standing.”
A pause.
Then his eyes lifted.
And this time—
There was no amusement in them.
“Sit,” Luca repeated.
She sat.
Slowly.
Measuring him now.
Enzo shifted slightly behind Luca, but said nothing.
Luca placed a folder on the table.
Pushed it toward her.
Elize didn’t open it yet.
“What is this?”
“Open it,” Luca said.
She did.
Photos.
Her stomach tightened—but her face didn’t change.
Not fully.
But Luca noticed everything.
He always did.
Old records.
Connections.
Her father’s name.
Adrian Cole.
Elize closed the folder slowly.
Silence filled the room.
Then Luca leaned back slightly.
“You’re very composed,” he said.
Elize met his gaze.
“And you’re very invasive.”
That earned a faint shift in his expression.
Almost approval.
Almost irritation.
“Tell me,” Luca said.
“Why is your name linked to Adrian Cole?”
There it was.
The pressure point.
Elize didn’t speak immediately.
Because speaking meant choosing a direction.
And once she chose—
There was no easy way back.
Enzo was watching her now too.
Careful.
Focused.
Waiting for cracks.
Elize lifted her chin slightly.
“I don’t know him,” she said.
A lie.
Clean.
Controlled.
Luca studied her.
Long.
Unmoving.
Then—
“Liar,” he said calmly.
And the room went still.
- Writer
