Chaper 4-Part 1
805 Words
Adrian
Sleep had never been something Adrian trusted.
Sleep made men careless.
Carelessness got people killed.
So instead of sleeping, Adrian Cross stood in the quiet observation room overlooking the inner compound and watched the security monitors flicker in silent rows.
Twenty-four cameras.
Every hallway.
Every gate.
Every corridor.
Marcus Valente liked control.
And control required eyes.
Adrian’s gaze moved slowly across the screens until it stopped on the courtyard from yesterday.
The same courtyard where Alessia Vale had stood in the middle of six prisoners and stared them down like she had nothing to lose.
Most people in her position would have panicked.
Begged.
Collapsed.
She hadn’t.
She had calculated.
Threatened.
Adapted.
Marcus loved that.
Adrian could already hear the quiet excitement in his voice when he realized it.
A new experiment.
A new game.
Adrian clenched his jaw slightly.
Marcus Valente didn’t collect people.
He studied them.
And Alessia Vale had just become his newest subject.
The office door opened quietly behind him.
Adrian didn’t turn.
“You’re still awake.”
Marcus’s voice was smooth, amused.
Adrian kept his eyes on the screens.
“Something you need?”
Marcus walked across the room slowly, carrying a small porcelain espresso cup. The rich scent of coffee filled the quiet space.
“I enjoy these moments,” Marcus said casually.
Adrian said nothing.
Marcus leaned against the desk beside him and studied the camera feeds.
“You’re watching her room.”
Adrian finally turned.
“I’m watching the compound.”
Marcus smiled.
“Yes, of course you are.”
Marcus tapped one finger lightly against the monitor.
The screen shifted.
Now showing Alessia’s hallway.
Adrian’s expression hardened.
“I didn’t ask for that feed.”
Marcus’s smile widened.
“No. But it’s the one you keep checking.”
Silence filled the room.
Marcus watched Adrian carefully.
“You moved very quickly yesterday.”
Adrian’s voice was calm.
“They crossed a line.”
Marcus raised an eyebrow.
“My line.”
Adrian didn’t answer.
Marcus took a sip of espresso.
“You’re aware of how interesting that is.”
“I’m aware you’re reading too much into it.”
Marcus chuckled softly.
“Oh, Adrian.”
He set the cup down.
“You’ve worked beside me for seven years.”
“Yes.”
“And in seven years you’ve never reacted emotionally.”
“I didn’t yesterday either.”
Marcus’s eyes gleamed slightly.
“You nearly crushed that man’s throat.”
“He threatened our leverage.”
“Our leverage.”
Marcus repeated the words slowly.
Then he smiled again.
“Interesting choice of phrasing.”
Adrian’s patience was thinning.
“What do you want, Marcus?”
Marcus walked toward the window and looked down at the compound below.
“I’ve decided Alessia needs an education.”
Adrian’s gaze sharpened.
“In what?”
“In survival.”
Adrian already knew the answer.
“No.”
Marcus turned.
“I didn’t ask.”
“You’re not assigning her to me.”
Marcus’s expression turned thoughtful.
“I am.”
Adrian shook his head slightly.
“You have trainers.”
“Yes.”
Marcus clasped his hands behind his back.
“But none of them interest me.”
Adrian stared at him.
“You’re turning this into a game.”
Marcus’s smile sharpened.
“It already is.”
Adrian stepped closer.
“You’re pushing too far.”
Marcus didn’t react.
“That’s the thing about pressure, Adrian.”
He gestured toward the screens.
“It reveals truth.”
Adrian’s voice lowered.
“You’re trying to provoke something.”
Marcus nodded.
“Yes.”
“And?”
Marcus looked directly at him.
“And you’re responding exactly how I expected.”
The words hung in the air.
Adrian knew Marcus well enough to understand the trap.
Marcus wasn’t testing Alessia.
He was testing Adrian.
Marcus walked toward the door.
“She’ll be in the training wing in thirty minutes.”
Adrian’s voice hardened.
“I said no.”
Marcus paused.
“If you refuse…”
He shrugged slightly.
“I’ll assign someone else.”
Adrian knew what that meant.
Someone crueler.
Someone less controlled.
Someone who might push Alessia too far.
Marcus opened the door.
“Don’t worry.”
He glanced back.
“I’m sure you’ll behave professionally.”
Then he left.
The door closed quietly behind him.
Adrian remained standing in the middle of the room.
Marcus had engineered the situation perfectly.
If Adrian refused—
Alessia suffered.
If Adrian accepted—
Marcus got exactly what he wanted.
Adrian exhaled slowly.
Seven years.
Seven years working beside Marcus Valente and he still found new ways to manipulate the board.
Adrian grabbed his jacket from the chair.
Because the worst part of Marcus’s games…
Was that sometimes the only way to protect someone—
Was to play
- Writer
