Chapter 1 Seven Days to Zero

The eviction notice was thinner than Ellie Carter expected.

One page. No envelope. Just a white sheet folded once and pushed halfway under her apartment door, as if the building itself were embarrassed to deliver it.

FINAL NOTICE, it read at the top, bold and unforgiving.

Seven days.

Ellie stood barefoot on the cold tile floor, the paper trembling slightly between her fingers. The apartment smelled faintly of detergent and burnt toast-proof that life had been lived here, that effort had been made. Outside, the city moved on with its usual indifference, traffic flowing, people rushing to places that still wanted them.

Seven days until she officially had nowhere to go.

She lowered herself onto the edge of the couch, the cheap fabric creaking beneath her weight. Rent overdue. Utilities behind. Phone service hanging by a thread. Her laptop-her last real asset-sat on the coffee table, screen dark, emails unanswered, job applications dissolving into silence.

Ellie had done everything she was supposed to do.

She worked. She saved. She stayed careful. She didn't gamble, didn't lean on people, didn't ask for help she couldn't repay. And yet here she was, holding proof that discipline alone didn't guarantee safety.

Her phone buzzed.

She flinched before she even looked.

Unknown Number.

Ellie let it ring once. Twice. Then stopped it with a swipe.

If it was a creditor, she wasn't ready. If it was the landlord, she had nothing new to offer. And if it was sympathy dressed up as concern, she didn't want that either.

She folded the eviction notice carefully and placed it on the counter beside her keys. Panic could wait. Panic wasted time. She had seven days-and today still mattered.

Ellie showered, dressed, and pulled her hair into a low, controlled bun. Her reflection looked composed, professional. No one would guess that her entire life was balanced on a deadline.

The address glowed on her phone screen:

Blackwood Group – Executive Offices

She had nearly laughed when the confirmation email arrived. A last-minute interview. No job title. No recruiter contact. Just a time, a floor, and a name.

Todd Blackwood.

Everyone in the corporate world knew that name.

Billionaire. CEO. Strategist. A man rumored to dismantle companies with a single boardroom conversation and rebuild them entirely under his control. He didn't do charity. He didn't do favors. He didn't summon people without purpose.

Which meant Ellie was walking into something she didn't understand.

But desperation had a way of making risk feel necessary.

The Blackwood Group tower rose clean and sharp against the skyline, all glass and authority. The kind of building that didn't advertise its power because it didn't need to.

Ellie adjusted her blazer as she approached the front desk. The receptionist glanced at her name on the tablet and nodded without comment.

"Top floor," she said. "He's expecting you."

That alone tightened something in Ellie's chest.

The elevator ride was silent, smooth, relentless. With every passing floor, her awareness sharpened-not fear, exactly, but the sensation of stepping onto a board where pieces were already moving.

The doors opened to a private corridor. One office. Dark wood. No nameplate.

She knocked.

"Come in."

The voice was calm. Male. Controlled.

Ellie pushed the door open.

The office was expansive and minimal, designed with intention rather than comfort. Floor-to-ceiling windows framed the city like an asset. And behind a wide desk stood Todd Blackwood.

He was taller than she expected. Broad-shouldered. Still. His suit was dark, perfectly tailored, not flashy-authority without effort. His gaze lifted from the desk and settled on her, sharp and assessing.

Ellie felt it instantly.

This wasn't an interview.

This was an evaluation.

"Miss Carter," he said. "You're late."

She glanced at her watch. "I'm not. I arrived five minutes early."

A pause.

Then-just barely-the corner of his mouth curved.

"Good," he said. "That tells me you pay attention."

He gestured to the chair opposite him. Ellie sat, spine straight, hands folded in her lap. She refused to fidget. Refused to shrink.

Todd leaned back, fingers steepled. "Do you know why you're here?"

"No," Ellie answered honestly. "I applied for an analyst role weeks ago. I assumed this was related."

"It isn't."

The word landed with precision.

He tapped a file on his desk. Her name was printed neatly on the tab.

"I know about your financial situation," he continued calmly. "Your overdue rent. Your pending eviction. Your employment gap. I also know you declined two offers in the past year because the terms didn't align with your ethics."

Her pulse roared in her ears. "You had no right-"

"I had every right," he interrupted smoothly. "You applied to my company."

Silence stretched between them.

"You're seven days from losing your home," he said.

Ellie didn't deny it. She wouldn't insult them both by pretending.

Todd stood and walked to the window, hands clasped behind his back as he looked out over the city. "I don't rescue people, Miss Carter. Rescue creates dependence."

He turned back to her, eyes sharp, unreadable.

"But I do believe in transactions."

Something cold settled in Ellie's stomach.

"I have an offer," he said. "One that resolves your immediate problem. And several others that follow."

Her fingers curled into her palms. "And the cost?"

That was when he smiled fully.

"We'll discuss that next."

The weight of the moment pressed down on her. Ellie understood then-standing on the edge of eviction, facing a man who could end her crisis with a sentence-that whatever he was offering, it would not come without consequence.

And there would be no walking away unchanged.