Aria hesitated in front of the towering glass doors of Lucien's office. The hallway was eerily quiet, lined with polished black marble and glowing LED lights. She could see her reflection in the glass—wet hair, borrowed uniform, shadows under her eyes.
A girl with no past. A ghost pretending to be real.
Her hand trembled as she pushed the door open.
The office was nothing like she expected. It wasn't cold or lifeless like the man himself. It was… controlled chaos. Modern elegance with sharp edges. Black walls. A steel desk. A wall-sized screen flickering with code.
And a single framed photo.
She shouldn't have looked.
But she did.
The photo sat dead center on the desk, like a shrine. A woman with storm-gray eyes and dark auburn hair smiled beside a young Lucien. The resemblance was unmistakable.
His mother?
Aria reached for it, fingers barely brushing the silver frame when—
"You know," came a voice from behind her, "I don't recall inviting you to touch my things."
She froze.
Lucien.
She hadn't heard him come in. How did he move like that?
Slowly, she turned around. His expression was unreadable—but his eyes were sharp. Watching. Waiting.
"I—I was just—" she stammered.
"Curious?" He stepped forward. "Curiosity is dangerous in my world, Miss Frost. You might not like what you find."
"I didn't mean to—"
"You did." His voice wasn't angry. It was calm. Too calm. "People always mean to. The difference is whether they get caught."
Her chest tightened. Her instincts screamed at her to run—but she held her ground.
Lucien moved past her, picked up the frame, and turned it facedown.
"She's dead," he said flatly. "In case you were wondering."
Aria didn't know what to say. She shouldn't care. But something about the way he said it…
"What happened to her?" she asked before she could stop herself.
Lucien's jaw tightened.
He didn't answer.
Instead, he turned and walked to the desk, tapping something on a sleek glass console. Lights dimmed. Security feeds flashed on the wall screen.
One of them showed Aria—ten minutes ago—stepping into his office.
"You were watching me?"
He lo
oked at her then, cold and precise.
"I watch everything."