It rained the next morning.
Not the soft kind that whispered against the glass but the loud, unrelenting downpour that blanketed Halstone in shades of gray. Water streamed down the windows of Blackwood Tower, and thunder cracked through the sky like a warning no one wanted to hear.
Siena stared out at it from Alexander's office.
She'd woken up in his arms just a few hours earlier, warm and safe in a way that didn't match the storm outside. They hadn't said much that morning. There were no grand declarations or dramatic promises. Just quiet—comfortable and shared.
But now, that quiet felt fragile. Like if either of them spoke the wrong word, it would crack.
"I have to meet with the board in twenty minutes," Alexander said as he walked into the office, straightening his tie in the mirror.
Siena turned from the window. "Are they expecting blood?"
"Not mine," he replied. "But they'll want someone's head."
She walked over to him and helped adjust the collar of his shirt. "They'll try to make Dorian a ghost again, won't they? Bury him under paperwork. Pretend this never happened."
Alexander met her eyes in the mirror. "Not if I don't let them."
She didn't answer, just pressed her palm lightly against his chest. His heart was steady. Strong. But there was something behind it—something unsettled.
He placed his hand over hers. "Come with me."
"To the boardroom?"
"No," he said. "After. I need to show you something."
---
The board meeting was held behind closed doors.
Siena didn't go in with him—she wasn't part of the board, and she didn't need to hear the greed masquerading as concern. Instead, she waited outside, seated on one of the long benches near the tall, frosted-glass walls.
Time passed slowly.
Twice, she stood up and paced. Three times, she caught snippets of raised voices from behind the doors. And when they finally opened, Alexander walked out alone, his expression unreadable.
She stood quickly. "How bad?"
"They're scared," he said simply. "But they won't stop me."
"That sounds like you won."
He gave a half-smile. "It wasn't a battle. It was a warning."
"To them?"
"To me," he said. "They reminded me just how fast they'll turn if things don't go their way."
Siena folded her arms. "And what are you going to do about that?"
"I'm going to stop playing by their rules."
---
They drove to the edge of the city.
Past the business districts. Past the suburbs. All the way to a quiet hill that overlooked the river. Siena didn't recognize the place, but Alexander seemed to know exactly where they were going.
He parked the car beside a small, ivy-covered gate.
"What is this place?" she asked, stepping out into the rain with him. Her coat shielded her from most of it, but the cold crept in anyway.
Alexander walked ahead, pushing the gate open. "Dael used to come here," he said. "It was his place to think. To disappear from the noise."
Siena followed him onto the narrow path, lined with old trees and soaked leaves.
"When he went missing, I came here every week. I think… part of me hoped I'd see him sitting on the bench again."
The bench came into view—old, wooden, slightly crooked. It sat under a tree that had nearly lost all its leaves.
They sat in silence, the rain whispering through the branches above them.
"I didn't just lose a mentor," Alexander said. "I lost the man who reminded me what integrity looked like. Even when we disagreed."
Siena turned toward him. "He sounds like someone you never stopped looking for."
"I didn't."
He leaned back against the bench and closed his eyes, letting the rain hit his face.
"I used to think power meant being untouchable. That if I built high enough walls, no one could hurt me. But I ended up locking out everyone who could have made this easier."
"You mean people like Dael?"
He opened his eyes and looked at her. "People like you."
Her breath caught slightly.
"I pushed you away once," he said, "because I thought protecting you meant leaving you out of the storm. But you walked through it anyway. Without me. And now you're still here."
"I never stopped being angry," she said honestly. "And I never stopped loving you."
His jaw tightened. "I know. I felt both every time you looked at me."
Siena reached over and took his hand. "You don't have to keep making peace with your past alone."
He didn't say anything for a long time. Then finally—"Stay."
She smiled. "Where?"
"Here. In this. With me. Whatever this becomes."
"I thought I already was."
---
They returned to the city just as the storm began to fade, but not before the first round of public backlash started.
Social media was already spiraling. Half the world hailed Alexander as a truth-teller. The other half accused him of calculated damage control. Siena scrolled through the comments, unsure whether to laugh or scream.
"They're calling you 'the redemption billionaire,'" she said, glancing over her shoulder at him.
He groaned. "That's worse than the 'cold king' thing from last year."
"Or 'the ice boss.'"
He narrowed his eyes. "Don't remind me."
She set her phone down. "So what's next?"
"We go back to work. We keep pushing the investigation. And we don't let them rewrite the narrative again."
"And us?"
He came over to her, gently brushing a hand against her cheek. "We figure it out. One storm at a time."
---
But not every storm could be predicted.
That night, someone leaked an old internal memo—one that hinted at Alexander's knowledge of Dorian's questionable dealings during the merger. The media took it and ran.
Headlines were cruel.
"Knight Knew More Than He Said."
"New Memo Raises Questions About Billionaire's Confession."
And worst of all—
"Was Dael Set Up?"
Reese called in a panic. "You need to release a counterstatement. Immediately. Deny everything."
Alexander sat in his office, staring at the memo. "It's real," he said quietly. "I wrote it."
Reese paused. "Then we have a problem."
"No," Alexander said, standing slowly. "We have a choice. Lie and survive. Or tell the whole truth and risk it all."
Siena stepped into the office just then, phone in hand, face pale. "Alex…"
He turned. "I know."
She walked over to him, lowering her voice. "Whatever's about to happen… don't fight it alone."
He gave her a tired smile. "I don't think I could anymore, even if I tried."