Chapter 2: The Girl Who Knew Too Much
Lena Hart had spent her entire life trying not to become important.
Important people attracted attention.
Attention attracted problems.
And problems were something Lena understood better than anyone.
She grew up watching them arrive.
A late rent notice.
A hospital bill.
A final goodbye.
Her mother always said their family survived because they knew when to stay quiet.
Lena believed that.
Until the night she punched Victor Romano.
Now she sat in a private office on the top floor of the Grandeur Hotel while six armed men watched her like she was a bomb waiting to explode.
The room was larger than her entire apartment.
Dark wood shelves covered the walls. Expensive paintings hung above a fireplace that was never lit. A city skyline stretched beyond the windows.
Victor Romano stood near the glass, looking down at New York.
He had changed jackets.
Someone had cleaned the blood from his lip.
But the bruise from her punch remained.
Lena wished she could disappear.
Instead, she sat across from him with trembling hands.
“You know what happens to people who attack me?”” Victor asked.
Lena swallowed.
“They usually don’t get invited into nice offices?””
Dmitri, standing near the door, almost smiled.
Almost.
Victor turned.
“You’re making jokes?””
“No.””
“You are.””
“I’m scared.””
That answer surprised him.
Lena looked down.
“I’m just trying to not panic.””
For a moment, Victor said nothing.
Then he walked toward his desk.
“What did you smell?””
“Bitter almonds.””
“Why?””
“My father taught me.””
Victor paused.
“Your father?””
“He worked with chemicals.””
“Worked where?””
Lena hesitated.
She had learned that powerful men collected information.
Names.
Addresses.
Weaknesses.
“My father died years ago.””
Victor noticed the change in her voice.
He did not push.
Not yet.
Instead, he placed a photograph on the desk.
It showed the champagne glass.
“You understand what you stopped tonight?””
Lena stared at the image.
“No.””
“Someone tried to poison me in front of three hundred witnesses.””
“I know.””
“No,” Victor said quietly.
“You don’t.””
The room became colder.
“That person was not trying to kill me because they hated me.””
Lena looked up.
“What does that mean?””
Victor leaned against the desk.
“It means they wanted me dead at a very specific moment.””
“Why?””
“Because tonight was the night I was supposed to announce a partnership.””
“With who?””
Victor looked toward the window.
“Someone who has been trying to destroy my organization for years.””
Lena frowned.
“And you think it was Leon?””
Victor’s eyes moved back to her.
“You saw him.””
“I saw him look angry.””
“Most people would see a frightened man.””
“But you didn’t.””
“No.””
The silence between them felt heavy.
Lena looked at the photograph again.
“Why did he bring the drink?””
Victor’s expression hardened.
“Because I trusted him.””
The answer was quieter than she expected.
For the first time, she saw something besides power in Victor Romano.
She saw betrayal.
A person realizing the knife came from the hand he held closest.
The office door suddenly opened.
Dmitri entered.
“Boss.””
Victor looked up.
“What?””
“We checked the kitchen footage.””
“And?””
Dmitri’s face was unreadable.
“It was deleted.””
Victor’s jaw tightened.
“By who?””
Dmitri placed a small device on the desk.
“We recovered part of it.””
The screen showed the service hallway.
A figure walked past carrying the champagne tray.
Lena leaned closer.
The person wore a hotel uniform.
A maid’s uniform.
Her stomach dropped.
“That’s impossible.””
Victor looked at her.
“Why?””
“Because…”
She stared at the blurry figure.
The shape.
The posture.
The way the person moved.
She knew that walk.
“No,” Lena whispered.
Victor stepped closer.
“Who is it?””
Lena’s face went pale.
Because the person on the screen was wearing the same uniform she wore every day.
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And when the camera zoomed in, the face became clear.
It was Lena Hart.
