Chapter 4 BEHIND CLOSED DOORS

The days that followed blurred into a storm of phone calls, contracts, and endless tasks. Anna barely had time to breathe, let alone think. Yet every moment was laced with tension, because Alexander Knight's presence was inescapable.

Even when he wasn't in the room, she could feel him-the weight of his gaze through the glass wall, the sound of his footsteps approaching, the ripple of silence that spread whenever he entered a space.

Working at Knight Enterprises wasn't just exhausting. It was suffocating.

And yet, Anna couldn't walk away. Not when her father's bills grew heavier each day.

That afternoon, Claire appeared at her desk with her usual icy composure. "Mr. Knight wants you in the boardroom. Now."

Anna froze. "The boardroom?"

Claire's sharp eyes flicked over her. "You'll be taking notes. Don't speak unless spoken to. And for your own sake, don't look weak."

Before Anna could reply, Claire was already striding down the hall. Heart pounding, Anna gathered her notebook and hurried after her.

---

The boardroom was massive, its glass walls overlooking the city like a throne room in the sky. A long polished table stretched down the center, where a dozen executives sat, their suits expensive, their faces lined with ambition.

And at the head of the table sat Alexander.

He didn't speak at first. He didn't need to. His silence was enough to command the room. When his gaze finally swept across the table, every man and woman straightened, waiting.

Anna slipped into a seat at the far end, clutching her pen like a lifeline.

The meeting began.

Numbers were presented, charts displayed, voices droning about projections and profits. But the moment someone faltered-hesitated, stumbled over an answer-Alexander pounced.

"Pathetic," he said when one executive failed to defend a proposal. His tone wasn't raised, but the word sliced through the air like a whip. "If you can't anticipate competitors, then you're already useless to me."

The man's face went pale.

Another tried to challenge Alexander's decision. His mistake.

"Do you think I built this empire by listening to incompetence?" Alexander's voice was smooth, deadly calm. "You're either with me, or you're irrelevant. Which is it?"

The room fell silent. No one dared breathe.

Anna's pen shook in her hand. She'd heard rumors of his ruthlessness, but seeing it firsthand was something else entirely. His control was absolute, his authority terrifying. And yet... no one left. They feared him, but they also needed him.

When the meeting finally ended, the executives scattered like prey fleeing a predator.

Anna remained frozen, her notebook filled with scribbles, her chest tight. She had witnessed power in its rawest form. And it chilled her to the bone.

---

"Stay," Alexander's voice cut through her thoughts as she began to stand.

Her knees wobbled. Slowly, she sank back into her chair.

He leaned back, loosening his tie, his eyes locking onto hers with unnerving precision. "Well? What did you think?"

She hesitated. "I think... you don't give people room to breathe."

One dark brow arched. "And why should I?"

"Because fear only lasts so long," she said quietly, surprising even herself. "Eventually, people break. Or they turn against you."

The silence stretched. Alexander's gaze didn't waver, sharp and calculating. Then, slowly, he smirked.

"You're not afraid of me."

Anna's breath hitched. "I didn't say that."

"You don't need to." His voice dropped lower, smooth and dangerous. "I can see it in your eyes. Fear... mixed with something else."

Heat flushed her cheeks. She gripped her pen tighter, forcing her voice steady. "Maybe you're misreading me."

His smirk widened, but his gaze grew darker, more intense. "No, Miss Williams. I never misread anyone."

The air between them thickened, charged with something unspoken, dangerous.

Finally, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "Good. I don't want blind loyalty. I want honesty. If you're brave enough to tell me the truth-even when it's dangerous-you may last longer than the others."

Anna swallowed hard, her throat tightened as Alexander's words sank in. Last longer than the others. What did that even mean? How many before her had stood in this same room, caught beneath that steel gaze, only to vanish from his world when they couldn't withstand the pressure?

Anna forced herself to meet his eyes, even though every instinct screamed at her to look away. "And if I don't last?" she asked, her voice low.

Alexander leaned back in his chair, studying her as if she were an equation only he could solve. "Then you'll join the countless others who thought they could survive in my world and failed."

There was no cruelty in his tone. No anger. Just the stark, terrifying truth of a man who never sugarcoated reality.

Her fingers clenched around her pen, knuckles white. "I don't plan on failing."

A slow smirk touched his lips, and it was more dangerous than his glare. "Then prove it."

Anna's heart pounded. She should've been terrified-and she was. But beneath the fear was something else, something far more unsettling. A pull she couldn't explain, as if she were a moth drawn to a flame she knew would burn her.

"Dismissed," Alexander said finally, his tone clipped.

Anna rose, clutching her notebook, grateful for the release. She turned toward the door, her heels clicking against the polished floor.

Just as she reached for the handle, his voice stopped her.

"Miss Williams."

She froze. Slowly, she looked back.

Alexander's eyes were locked on her, sharp as steel, unreadable as always. "In this company, there are two types of people-those who get consumed... and those who conquer. Decide quickly which one you want to be."

The weight of his words followed her out of the boardroom, sinking deep into her chest.

Anna had stepped into his world, a world built on power, control, and shadows. And she knew now-there was no turning back.