Chapter 2 - The CEO Woke Up Asking for Me
The message arrived at 6:32 the following morning.
REPORT TO THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE AT 8:00 A.M.
I stared at the screen.
For three years, Meridian Tower management had communicated with cleaners using group texts.
Shift changes.
Supply shortages.
Schedule updates.
Never personal invitations to executive offices.
I almost ignored it.
Then a second message appeared.
MANDATORY.
I arrived at eight exactly.
The elevator opened onto the executive floor.
Everything looked different in daylight.
The carpet was darker.
The glass walls reflected the frozen city outside.
Assistants moved quickly.
Executives whispered into phones.
And every person who looked at me seemed to know why I was there.
One woman stood from behind a desk.
"Bailey Parker?"
"Yes."
"I'm Natalie Brooks. Chief of Staff."
She studied me.
"You saved Lucas."
"I performed CPR."
"Exactly."
She motioned toward a conference room.
I entered.
Three lawyers sat around a polished table.
A security director stood near the window.
I suddenly felt very small.
One of the lawyers folded his hands.
"Ms. Parker, we need to establish exactly what happened last night."
"I already told emergency responders."
"We know."
"Then why am I here?"
No one answered immediately.
Finally, Natalie said:
"Mr. Bennett asked us to bring you here."
I looked at her.
"He's awake?"
"He was awake at 6:04."
My heart lifted.
"That's good."
Then she added:
"And the first thing he asked was your name."
I sat down slowly.
The lawyer opened a folder.
"Mr. Bennett remembers entering the elevator."
He looked at me.
"He remembers seeing you."
He turned a page.
"Then he remembers being unable to breathe."
My stomach tightened.
"Does he remember the envelope?"
Every person in the room looked at me.
I knew then that the question mattered.
"What envelope?" the lawyer asked.
I hesitated.
"I saw him holding a black envelope."
The security director stepped forward.
"Where?"
"Inside the elevator."
"Did he have it when he collapsed?"
"I don't know."
"What happened to it?"
"I don't know."
The lawyer exchanged a look with Natalie.
Then the door opened.
Lucas Bennett entered.
I had seen his photograph hundreds of times.
It hadn't prepared me.
He looked thinner than he had in the photographs.
His black hair was slightly disheveled.
He wore a simple dark sweater instead of a suit.
A portable heart monitor was clipped beneath his jacket.
Two people followed him.
He waved them off.
Then looked directly at me.
His eyes were the same gray ones from the elevator.
"Bailey."
The room went silent.
I stood.
"Mr. Bennett."
He smiled faintly.
"You can call me Lucas."
I didn't know what to say.
"I hear you're difficult to kill."
I blinked.
He smiled.
It was the first time I realized that behind the intimidating headlines was a man capable of humor.
"You're welcome."
A few people laughed.
Lucas's expression softened.
Then he walked closer.
"Can we speak alone?"
Natalie hesitated.
Lucas looked at her.
"Please."
Everyone left except us.
The door clicked shut.
Lucas sat across from me.
For a moment, he said nothing.
Then:
"You saved my life."
"I did what anyone trained would do."
"Not everyone would."
"I couldn't just watch."
He studied me.
"Why did you know CPR?"
I looked away.
"I used to be in nursing school."
"Used to?"
"My mother got sick."
He waited.
"She had pancreatic cancer."
His expression changed.
"I'm sorry."
"Thank you."
"How long were you in nursing school?"
"Two years."
"What happened?"
"I left."
"Because of the bills?"
I looked at him.
"How did you know?"
He smiled.
"Because I looked you up."
I froze.
"Excuse me?"
"I wanted to know who you were."
"You investigated me?"
"I asked security to pull your employee file."
"That's invasive."
"Yes."
The honesty caught me off guard.
"But I wanted to know who the woman was who screamed at me to stay alive."
I almost laughed.
"I wasn't screaming."
"You were."
"How would you know?"
"Apparently I remember being yelled at."
We both smiled.
Then he became serious.
"Bailey, you said you saw an envelope."
"Yes."
"What else did you see?"
I thought.
"A man."
Lucas's body went still.
"Who?"
"I don't know."
"What did he look like?"
"Dark hair. Expensive suit. Silver cufflinks."
Lucas stared at me.
"Anything else?"
I remembered.
"He was walking toward the elevator."
"How close?"
"Maybe twenty feet."
"Could you identify him?"
"Maybe."
Lucas leaned back.
"Good."
I frowned.
"Why?"
"Because I don't think my collapse was medical."
The room suddenly felt colder.
"What?"
"I think someone poisoned me."
I stared.
Lucas continued.
"My doctors found traces of a drug in my system."
"What kind?"
"Something designed to slow the heart."
I felt sick.
"Then someone tried to kill you."
"Yes."
"And you know who?"
"Not yet."
I stood.
"I'm not part of this."
"I know."
"Then why tell me?"
"Because whoever did it may know you were the last person with me."
I stared at him.
"I don't understand."
"Neither do I."
He stood slowly.
"That's why I need your help."
"I clean your offices."
"Not anymore."
"What does that mean?"
"I want you to work for me."
I laughed.
"Doing what?"
"Executive assistant."
I stared at him.
"You don't need an executive assistant. You need a security team."
"I have one."
"Then why me?"
His expression softened.
"Because everyone around me has a position."
I didn't understand.
"You don't."
"That's supposed to make me qualified?"
"It means you don't owe anyone anything."
I shook my head.
"I can't be your assistant."
"Why?"
"Because I'm a cleaner."
"No."
He took a step closer.
"You're a woman who kept pressure on my chest long after your arms were exhausted because you refused to let me die."
He looked at me.
"That's not a cleaner."
I didn't know what to say.
Then my phone vibrated.
Unknown number.
I answered.
Silence.
Then a whisper.
"You should have let him die."
The call ended.
My fingers went cold.
Lucas saw my face.
"What happened?"
I showed him the phone.
May you like
His jaw tightened.
"That," he said quietly, "is why I asked you to stay."
