Episode 1

Elena pushed open the glass door and stepped inside.

The boardroom was already full, every chair taken by men twice her age, men who thought she didn’t deserve to sit at the same table.

She ignored their stares, just like always. She had fought her way here. She had proved herself more times than she could count. And she wasn’t about to let anyone see her doubt now.

But today… something felt different.

The silence was heavier than usual. The air was thick, almost uneasy.

Her eyes moved across the room—and froze.

A man she didn’t know was standing near the tall window, hands in his pockets, his dark suit sharp against the light spilling in. He wasn’t one of her directors, not an investor either. He didn’t look like he belonged in a boardroom at all.

There was something dangerous about him. The way he stood so calmly, the way his eyes locked onto her the moment she entered, like he’d been waiting just for her.

She frowned. “Who let him in?”

No one spoke. Not a single board member dared to answer. Their silence made her chest tighten.

The stranger smiled—slow, unsettling, the kind of smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“So, this is the famous Elena Vora,” he said. His voice was low and smooth, but it carried a weight that made her skin prickle. “The youngest CEO in the city.”

Her pulse jumped, but she kept her face cold.

“And you are?” she asked, sharper than she meant to.

“Lorenzo.”

He said it like it was enough. Like his name alone should make her understand.

Her stomach twisted. She did know that name. Everyone did.

The whispers at parties. The late-night warnings. The man who ran the city from the shadows. The mafia king no one dared to cross.

Lorenzo DeLuca.

And he was here. In her boardroom.

She forced herself to stand taller. “This is a private meeting. You don’t belong here.”

He moved closer, slow and deliberate, each step echoing in the tense silence. The room felt smaller with every inch he stole between them.

“I came to see the woman,” he said, his gaze never leaving hers, “who thinks she can rule a city without bowing to anyone.”

Her jaw clenched. “You’re wasting your time. I don’t bow to anyone.”

Lorenzo’s lips curved again, but his eyes stayed cold.

“Then I’ll enjoy watching you break.”

For a second, Elena couldn’t breathe. His words weren’t shouted, they weren’t even cruel on the surface—but they carried a promise, heavy and real.

Her phone buzzed against the table, loud in the silence.

She glanced down. A message lit up the screen.

He knows your secret.

Her blood ran cold.

Who sent this? What secret? And how much did he already know?

Her gaze shot back up—only to find Lorenzo watching her with the same dark smile, as if he’d written the message himself.

Her fingers tightened around her phone, but she didn’t move. She couldn’t.

Because for the first time in years… Elena felt trapped.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***