Chapter 2 - The Hallway Confrontation
Emma did not freeze when she saw the gleaming blade of the combat knife.
She disarmed the bodyguard effortlessly, relying on reflexes built during dangerous years working in unstable border zones.
She twisted his wrist, drove her knee into his stomach, and left him groaning in pain on the hallway floor.
She calmly smoothed out her uniform and walked back out to the main dining room.
Daniel, the floor manager, looked at her with absolute panic shining in his eyes.
"Maddox just called the restaurant owner, Emma," Daniel whispered, sweating profusely.
"You are officially fired, and he is threatening to ruin this entire business if you don't leave right now."
Emma untied her apron, completely unfazed by the billionaire's petty and predictable revenge.
As she walked toward the coat check to collect her things, Elias Ward stepped directly into her path.
He looked at her with intense, calculating eyes that missed absolutely nothing.
"I need someone who can read Maddox's balance sheets and isn't afraid of his thugs," Elias stated calmly.
"I want to hire you to audit his freight lines before I sign this nine-hundred-million-dollar merger tomorrow morning."
Emma hesitated, knowing she had promised herself a quiet, safe life away from corporate warfare.
"Why do you need an independent audit so urgently?" she asked suspiciously.
May you like
Elias looked around the crowded restaurant before leaning in very close to her ear.
"Because I have reason to believe Maddox is smuggling military-grade weapons through my civilian shipping routes."
