Chapter 2 Unseen ties

Cassidy could feel his eyes on her long after he had left the room.

The faint echo of Alexander's footsteps in the hallway still lingered in her mind as she walked out of the penthouse office. The weight of the confrontation sat heavy on her shoulders, but there was something else beneath it. Something that whispered of danger. The way he'd looked at her-intense, probing, calculating. The way he'd warned her of consequences.

But Cassidy wasn't the type to be intimidated. Not by anyone. Certainly not by a man like Alexander Cross.

As the elevator descended, the door closed with a soft chime, and Cassidy leaned against the cold, polished wall, her breath still shallow. She hadn't expected to walk out of there with any answers. Not yet. But what she had learned-the way he reacted when she mentioned the corruption, the lies-told her more than she needed to know.

She had him cornered. And he knew it. But Cassidy wasn't done with him. Not by a long shot.

The city stretched out before her as the elevator descended, the towering buildings lit like fireflies in the distance. Her phone buzzed in her pocket, pulling her from her thoughts. She checked the screen.

A message from her editor: "Cassidy, you need to tread carefully. Vaughn just made a move on Cross Industries. We don't know what he's after yet, but it could be big. Keep your eyes open."

Richard Vaughn. Cassidy's stomach twisted at the name. Vaughn was a name that followed Cross like a shadow, a bitter rival who played a dangerous game. No one knew the full extent of their animosity, but Cassidy knew enough to understand one thing: Vaughn wanted power, and Cross's downfall was his path to it.

But Vaughn's game had always been subtle-sabotage, manipulation, and exploitation. And Cassidy knew the exact kind of man Vaughn was. He didn't just want to take over Cross Industries. He wanted to destroy Alexander Cross personally, make him suffer the way he had suffered.

And if she was right, that meant Cassidy was already caught in the crossfire.

The elevator reached the ground floor, and Cassidy stepped out, her mind racing. Vaughn's recent move could be the key to bringing Alexander down-if she could figure out what he was planning. She needed more information. More leverage. If she could crack this open, expose the conspiracy that tied Cross Industries to Vaughn's dark dealings, she could not only take down a corrupt empire but reveal the truth about Alexander Cross's role in it.

But that would mean uncovering secrets she wasn't sure she was ready for.

Her phone buzzed again-this time, a call from her informant inside Cross Industries. Cassidy quickly answered.

"What have you got for me?" she asked, her voice low and urgent.

"Cassidy, you need to be careful," the voice on the other end warned, shaky. "Cross isn't just a businessman. He's dangerous. The things he's involved in... it's not just about power, Cassidy. It's personal. And you're about to get caught up in something far bigger than you realize."

Cassidy clenched her jaw. "What do you mean 'personal'? What's he hiding?"

There was a long pause, and Cassidy's stomach twisted into a knot. She knew the voice on the other end was more than just an informant. They were someone who knew Cross's world-had lived in it, maybe even been scarred by it.

"I can't tell you everything. But I know this-you're not the only one looking into him. Vaughn has his own sources. He's digging. And he's getting close."

Cassidy's pulse quickened. Vaughn's reach had always been extensive, but now, to hear he was digging into Cross's personal life? That added another layer to the mystery-and the danger.

"Where's Vaughn going with this?" Cassidy pressed, her eyes scanning the rain-slicked street as she stepped out into the night.

"I don't know. But I know something-Alexander Cross has a weakness. A family secret. Something that could bring him to his knees."

Cassidy's heart skipped. A family secret? Alexander Cross, the unbreakable CEO, had a weakness? What could it be?

The voice on the other end dropped to a whisper. "You need to be careful, Cassidy. I don't know what this will mean for you-crossing paths with either of them-but I'm telling you, once you start digging, there's no going back."

The call ended before Cassidy could respond, the line going dead in her ear. She stood there for a moment, her mind reeling with the new information.

A weakness. A secret. The powerful CEO, the ruthless billionaire with everything, had something to lose-a family secret that could unravel everything he had worked for.

Cassidy's hands clenched into fists. This was the opening she needed.

But what was the secret? Was it something she could use to her advantage? Could it be the key to taking down Alexander Cross once and for all?

The rain had stopped, leaving only a mist hanging in the air as Cassidy made her way through the street, the dim glow of the streetlights casting long shadows across the pavement. Her car was parked in the garage nearby, but her mind was a million miles away.

She needed to find out everything about Alexander Cross's past, his family-everything. Because if he had a weakness, Cassidy would find it. But in this game of secrets, Cassidy wasn't sure who she could trust. Richard Vaughn had his own agenda, and Alexander Cross wasn't the man he appeared to be. Every step she took brought her closer to the truth-but the closer she got, the more she realized she was walking a razor's edge.

And the most dangerous part? She was falling for him.

That realization hit her like a ton of bricks. She hadn't planned on it. She hadn't expected to be drawn to Alexander Cross, the man she had set out to destroy. But there was something about him, something buried beneath that icy exterior, that pulled at her in ways she couldn't explain. His guarded vulnerability, the loneliness that lurked behind those cold eyes-it called to something deep inside her.

But she couldn't afford to get distracted. Not now.

Cassidy reached her car and slid into the driver's seat, her fingers gripping the wheel tightly. She couldn't afford to let her feelings complicate things. The truth had to come first. Alexander Cross would never be allowed to stand in her way-not again. Not after everything he had done.

But the more she uncovered, the more she realized that both her and Cross's fates were tangled in ways she hadn't anticipated.

With one final glance toward the city, Cassidy started the engine. The game had just begun.