THE STRANGER
“Ma’am?”
Elena turned at the sound of the voice.
A young woman approached her with a polite smile.
“Miss, are you Elena Blackwood?” she asked.
“Yes, that’s me.”
“The secretary would like to discuss a few things with you concerning the event planning.”
“Alright. Thank you.”
Elena adjusted the folder in her arms and followed the woman toward the reception office. Her mind was already occupied with the event and everything that still needed to be arranged. There were several details to go over, and she wanted to make sure everything was perfect.
She glanced down at the folder in her arms, mentally going through the details she still needed to check. There were arrangements to confirm, people to contact, and small mistakes she wanted to catch before they became bigger problems. Elena liked making sure everything came together properly. It was the kind of work she enjoyed, even when it left her with more things to do than she could comfortably handle. She adjusted the folder against her chest and hurried after the young lady, determined not to keep the secretary waiting.
As she turned the corner, she suddenly bumped into someone.
The impact sent the files in her hands flying across the floor.
“Oh my God!” she gasped.
Papers scattered in every direction.
“I’m so sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
She quickly bent down to gather the documents.
“Oh, my goodness. Clumsy me!” she muttered. “I almost knocked someone over.”
There was no response.
Elena picked up another sheet before straightening. As she raised her head, the first thing she noticed was the man’s height.
He stood before her in a perfectly fitted black suit. His dark hair was neatly styled, and his expression was stern enough to make her momentarily forget her apology.
Then she looked into his eyes.
And froze.
He was staring at her.
Not with anger.
Not with annoyance.
But with shock.
A deep, unsettling shock that left him completely still.
He looked at her as though he had just seen a ghost.
Elena blinked and glanced behind her, wondering if someone was standing there.
There was no one.
When she looked back at him, he was still staring.
“Are you okay?” she asked cautiously.
The man’s lips parted, but no words came out.
His gaze moved slowly across her face, as though he were searching for something—or someone.
Elena shifted uncomfortably.
“I’m really sorry about the files. I didn’t mean to bump into you.”
“Who are you?” he asked in a low voice.
She frowned.
“I just apologized to you.”
“No.” He took a small step closer, his eyes never leaving her face. “Your name.”
Something about his tone made Elena’s smile disappear.
“Elena,” she answered coldly.
The moment she said her name, his expression changed.
It was almost as if hearing it had confirmed something he desperately did not want to believe.
“Elena,” he repeated under his breath.
She frowned. “Yes. That’s my name. Is something wrong?”
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he continued looking at her, his expression caught somewhere between disbelief and fear.
For several seconds, neither of them moved.
Then a voice called from the end of the hallway.
“Sir?”
The man finally looked away. His jaw tightened as he turned toward the person who had called him.
He glanced at Elena one last time before taking a step away.
But after only two steps, he stopped.
Without looking back at her, he asked quietly, “Does she know?”
The person behind him hesitated.
“Know what?”
The man’s eyes returned to Elena.
For the first time, something besides shock appeared in them.
Fear.
“No,” he answered quietly.
“She doesn’t know anything.”
Then he walked away.
Elena remained standing in the middle of the hallway, the papers clutched against her chest.
What had just happened?
Who was that man?
And why had he looked at her as though he had seen a ghost come back from the dead?
