Chapter 2: Blood in the Boardroom
1392 Words
Solomon did not believe in coincidences.
He believed in patterns. In cause and effect. In instincts sharpened by centuries of survival and war. And when Seraphina Eve walked out of his office, she left behind something far more dangerous than curiosity.
She left a disturbance.
He stood motionless, staring at the closed door long after her footsteps faded. The city stretched endlessly beyond the glass wall, bathed in sunlight that warmed his skin without consequence.
Too warm.
His jaw tightened.
The scent still lingered in the air—subtle, elusive, wrong. Not perfume. Not human. It clung to his senses like a whisper he couldn’t quite grasp, stirring something primal beneath his ribs.
Impossible.
Solomon turned sharply. “Security.”
Within seconds, Elias appeared, tall and broad, his eyes glowing faintly amber before dimming back to human brown.
“Yes, Alpha.”
“Pull her file again,” Solomon ordered. “Everything. Medical. Employment. Surveillance. I want eyes on her at all times.”
Elias hesitated. “Sir… she’s human.”
Solomon’s gaze snapped to him.
“No,” he said coldly. “She’s something else.”
By the time I arrived the next morning, the building felt different.
The air was heavier. Watchful.
I stepped through security, forcing myself to ignore the way the guard’s eyes lingered too long on my face. The elevator ride up made my stomach churn, each floor tightening the invisible knot in my chest.
Eight a.m. sharp.
I was early.
Again.
When I reached Solomon’s office, the door was already open.
“Come in,” his voice carried.
I obeyed.
He stood by his desk, sleeves rolled up, dark eyes assessing me with an intensity that made my skin prickle.
“You were followed last night,” he said without preamble.
My heart skipped.
“I—what?”
“A black SUV trailed you from the building to your apartment. You didn’t notice.”
I swallowed. “I noticed.”
A flicker of something dangerous passed through his gaze.
“Good,” he said. “That means you’re not careless.”
“Should I be worried?” I asked quietly.
“Yes.”
The word landed heavy.
He handed me a tablet. “Today’s schedule. You’ll accompany me to the board meeting.”
My fingers brushed his when I took it.
The reaction was immediate.
Heat surged up my arm, sharp and electric. My breath hitched before I could stop it. Solomon froze, his hand still hovering inches from mine.
For a split second—
The air vibrated.
His pupils expanded. His jaw clenched hard enough to make a muscle twitch.
Then he stepped back.
“Do not touch me without permission,” he said, voice dangerously controlled.
“I’m sorry,” I murmured.
But something in his gaze said he wasn’t angry.
He was unsettled.
The boardroom buzzed with tension as executives took their seats. Solomon sat at the head of the table, commanding silence without a word. I stood beside him, tablet in hand, every sense on high alert.
This place wasn’t safe.
Not because of humans.
Because of him.
As the meeting began, a dull ache bloomed behind my eyes. The longer I stayed in the room, the louder the pressure became, like my blood was responding to something unseen.
“Miss Eve.”
I startled.
“Yes, sir?”
Solomon’s eyes bore into me. “You’re pale.”
“I’m fine.”
A lie.
A sudden voice cut through the room. “Alpha Solomon.”
Every muscle in Solomon’s body went rigid.
The man standing by the door was tall, sharp-featured, dressed in expensive gray. His smile was polite—but his eyes were cold.
Vampire.
The word slammed into my mind like a warning bell.
“Councilor Lucien,” Solomon said coolly. “This is a private meeting.”
Lucien’s gaze slid to me, lingering just a second too long. His smile widened.
“Forgive the intrusion,” he said. “But we sensed… an irregularity.”
My blood burned.
I clenched my fists, nails biting into my palms as instinct screamed at me to run.
“There is no irregularity here,” Solomon said. “Leave.”
Lucien chuckled softly. “If that were true, Alpha, I wouldn’t be standing in your territory at noon.”
Silence crashed over the room.
Human executives shifted uncomfortably, unaware of the real danger unfolding inches from them.
Lucien’s eyes never left me.
“There is something wrong with your assistant,” he said calmly. “Something that does not belong.”
Solomon stood.
The floor trembled.
“She belongs to me,” he said.
The words echoed louder than they should have.
Lucien’s smile vanished.
“Careful,” the vampire warned. “You’re defending something you don’t understand.”
Solomon leaned forward, eyes blazing. “And you’re forgetting where you stand.”
Lucien studied him for a long moment, then inclined his head slightly.
“For now,” he said.
Then his gaze flicked back to me—sharp, knowing.
“We’ll meet again, little hybrid.”
My heart stopped.
Hybrid.
Lucien turned and walked out, vanishing as quickly as he’d arrived.
The boardroom erupted in confused murmurs.
Solomon said nothing.
He turned to me slowly.
“What did he call you?” he asked.
I couldn’t breathe.
“I—I don’t know,” I whispered.
His gaze searched my face, piercing through every lie I’d ever told myself.
The pressure snapped.
Pain exploded through my chest, hot and blinding. I gasped, staggering backward as the room tilted violently.
“Seraphina!” Solomon caught me before I fell.
His arms closed around me—
And everything broke.
My vision went red.
A low, feral sound tore from my throat as power surged uncontrollably to the surface.
Gasps filled the room.
The boardroom felt suffocating after Lucien left.
Human executives exchanged uneasy glances, whispering under their breath, instinctively sensing danger they couldn’t name. One man wiped sweat from his brow. Another loosened his tie, his pulse visibly racing.
Solomon remained standing.
“Everyone out,” he said calmly.
No one argued.
Chairs scraped against the floor as they filed out, some casting nervous looks in my direction. When the doors finally shut, silence crashed down like a physical force.
I swayed slightly, gripping the edge of the table to steady myself.
“Sit,” Solomon ordered again—but this time, his voice lacked its earlier coldness.
I obeyed.
“What happened just now?” he asked quietly. “Tell me everything.”
“I don’t know,” I said, my voice barely audible. “I swear it.”
Another lie.
Not entirely.
I knew what Lucien was. I knew what he’d sensed. I just didn’t know how much longer I could keep pretending.
Solomon moved closer, crouching slightly so we were eye level. The proximity made my skin buzz painfully.
“Look at me,” he said.
I did.
Something ancient stirred behind his eyes again. Not anger. Not suspicion.
Recognition.
The pressure in my chest intensified, spreading through my veins like molten fire. My heartbeat thundered in my ears, drowning out every other sound.
“Your heart rate is wrong,” Solomon muttered, more to himself than to me. “Your temperature is rising.”
“I need air,” I gasped.
Before he could respond, a sharp sting cut across my senses.
Pain.
Not physical—something deeper.
A presence brushed against my mind, cold and invasive.
I cried out, clutching my head.
Solomon straightened instantly, his aura flaring. “Get out,” he growled—to someone unseen.
The lights flickered.
A shadow rippled briefly across the glass walls, then vanished.
The pressure eased slightly, but the damage was done. My control slipped further, cracking like thin ice beneath too much weight.
Solomon turned back to me, his expression dark with fury.
“They’re testing boundaries,” he said. “And they’re using you.”
“I didn’t choose this,” I whispered.
His gaze softened—for half a second.
“I know,” he said.
That was when the pain surged again—stronger, hotter, uncontrollable.
Solomon stared down at my eyes—one burning crimson, the other glowing gold.
Time froze.
“Impossible,” he breathed.
And that was when the alarms began to scream.
- Writer
