Raven:
I walk into the office Monday morning braced for a fight and my desk hasn't been moved.
I drop my bag on my chair and stare at the unchanged workspace. After Saturday and after everything Adrian said in his car, I expected to find my things relocated into his office whether I agreed or not.
But everything is exactly as I left it.
My phone flashes on my desk. A new text lights up the screen.
Meet me at the garage tonight after work. I found something you're going to want to see.
Jordan. It must be what we talked about on Saturday.
The intercom on my desk buzzes.
Adrian's voice comes through the speaker. "Ms. Stone. My office."
I shove my phone in my pocket and grab my tablet.
I knock once on his door.
"Come in."
He's standing by the window with his hands in his pockets. When he turns to face me, exhaustion is written all over him. Dark circles under his eyes, tension pulling at his shoulders, his jaw working like he's been grinding his teeth all weekend.
"Please, Sit."
I take the chair across from his desk. He doesn't sit. He Just leans against the front of his desk with his arms crossed, looking down at me.
"Are you ready to move into my office?"
My chest tightens. So we're doing this now.
"With all due respect, sir, I think that would be a big mistake."
His eyebrows lift. "How so, Ms. Stone?"
I set my tablet on my lap and force myself to meet his eyes. "Because people are going to notice. Your executive assistant suddenly working behind closed doors with you all day? That raises questions you don't want people asking."
"I don't care what people think."
"You should care what your father thinks. He already warned you to keep me in line." My voice comes out steadier than I feel. "What message does it send if I'm suddenly in here where no one can see us?"
His jaw tightens but he stays quiet.
"And remember , Mr Richard Harrington cornered me Friday night. He made it very clear I should know my place. If I'm suddenly working in your office all day, he's going to think there's something between us. He'll start digging into my background." I lean forward. "I'm a lone wolf with no pack history who showed up six months ago. If someone really starts pulling at those threads, what do you think happens?"
Something flickers across his face.
"And then there's Anastasia. She hit me in public because she didn't like the way you looked at me. What do you think she'll do when she hears I'm in your office every single day?"
Silence stretches between us. I can see him processing and weighing my words.
"You're right." He drags a hand through his hair. "I didn't think it through."
I blink. I was ready to argue with him . "You're agreeing with me?"
"Don't sound so surprised." His mouth quirks. "I can admit when I'm wrong."
"That's nice."
"Don't get used to it." He moves behind his desk. "Your desk stays where it is."
I stand. "Thank you sir."
He nods once. "That's all."
I leave before my expression gives anything away.
The rest of the day passes in a blur of emails and phone calls and meetings that I attend but barely register. My mind keeps circling back to Jordan's text, to whatever he found that was important enough to meet in person.
By the time six o'clock rolls around, I'm ready to crawl out of my skin.
I shut down my computer and grab my coat.
"Leaving?" Adrian's voice makes me turn.
He's standing in his doorway, his jacket slung over his shoulder.
"Yes. Long day."
"Drive safe."
I nod and head for the elevator before he can say anything else.
******
The parking garage is nearly empty by the time I arrive. Most people left an hour ago, and the fluorescent lights cast everything in harsh shadows.
Jordan's black sedan is parked in the far corner, away from the cameras like always.
I pull open the passenger door and slide in.
"What did you find?"
Jordan grins, and there's something almost gleeful in his expression. "You're going to love this."
He opens his laptop and turns it toward me. "It turns out you weren't Anastasia's only victim of high school violence."
The screen shows a photo of a young woman, maybe seventeen or eighteen years . Her arms are covered in knife mark scars, thin white lines crisscrossing her skin like a map of pain.
My hand flies to my mouth. "Oh my God."
"You think that's shocking?" Jordan swipes to the next photo. "There's more. Anastasia Harrington has been struggling with drug addiction for years. In and out of rehab, but it never sticks."
He shows me medical records, rehab admission forms, all with Anastasia's name stamped across them.
"Is she still using?"
"After everything?" Jordan pulls up a new photo. "Yes. And it seems like she's not even trying to hide it anymore."
The photo shows Anastasia in what looks like a VIP section of a club. Her eyes are glassy and unfocused, a small plastic bag of white powder visible on the table in front of her. Another photo shows her stumbling out of the same club, barely able to stand, someone holding her up.
I stare at the images. Anastasia Harrington, the Harrington princess, completely wasted and high in public.
"When were these taken?"
"Two weeks ago. She's at that club every weekend." Jordan closes the laptop. "Her family has been burying this for years. Paying off victims, silencing hospitals, making sure none of it reaches the press. But I found it all."
"I knew I could count on you." I look at him, genuinely grateful. "My hacker bestie comes through again."
"It's not for free though." Jordan's grin widens. "You're coming to the club with me. Just once."
"Jordan, I can't just….."
"I desperately need some dick, Raven. I'm dying here. And you need to let loose for one night instead of living and breathing revenge every second." He gives me puppy eyes. "Come on. When's the last time you did something fun?"
I want to say no. But Jordan has been there for me since college, when I was lost and broken and didn't know how to piece myself back together. He helped me become Raven Stone. Helped me get the credentials, the references, everything I needed.
He's been my only family for eight years.
"Fine. Just this once."
"Yes!" Jordan pumps his fist. "Saturday night. It's going to be amazing."
I look back at the closed laptop, thinking about the evidence locked inside. The scars on that girl's arms. The drugs. The rehab records.
"This is perfect," I say quietly.
"What are you going to do with it?"
"To get to the top, you have to get rid of the leeches first." I meet his eyes. "And Anastasia is the biggest leech of them all."
Jordan nods slowly.
"Just be smart about it."
"Of course, I will."
I reach for the door handle and start to push it open.
A flash of light catches my eye. Bright and sudden, coming from between two cars to my left.
A camera flash.
I turn my head just in time to see a figure in dark clothes dart from behind a concrete pillar and sprint toward the stairwell.
Someone was taking pictures of us.
My heart slams against my ribs.
"Did you see that?" I ask Jordan, but my voice sounds far away.
"See what?"
The figure is already gone, disappeared into the shadows of the stairwell.
But they got photos. Of me and Jordan. Of us meeting in secret.
What the fuck.