Chapter 26
“Oh, really?” Miranda’s voice dipped into a conspiratorial whisper as she leaned closer, her eyes glinting with a predatory curiosity. The faint hum of the office faded beneath her probing tone. “If Starbright had these secret recruitment channels, we insiders would’ve heard whispers by now. Come on, Valeria, level with me—no games. Do you have a hook in the company’s upper ranks?”
Valeria shook her head with a calm, unwavering certainty, her smile a quiet shield. “No, nothing like that. I’m just an ordinary woman—no strings, no favors.” Her words rang clear, a steady pulse against Miranda’s mounting suspicion.
Miranda’s gaze flicked to the phone resting on the table—a local brand, its edges scuffed and screen faintly scratched, a relic far from the gleam of wealth. Her tone softened, coaxing now, laced with a feigned intimacy. “Valeria, I see you as a friend. It’s just us here—you can trust me. Are you sure there’s nothing you’re holding back?”
“I’m being straight with you,” Valeria replied, her voice firm yet gentle, a riverbed unshaken by the current. “I’ve got no connections at Starbright. If I did, I wouldn’t be sitting here as a lowly assistant.”
“Really?” Miranda pressed, her skepticism a lingering shadow, unwilling to retreat.
“Yes, really,” Valeria affirmed, her gaze locking with Miranda’s, steady and unyielding.
The air thickened as Miranda fell silent, her piercing stare boring into Valeria. She noted the faint timidity in Valeria’s eyes, the subtle uncertainty Adriana had so often sneered about. Could it be that Valeria had clawed her way in on merit alone? The thought gnawed at Miranda, her earlier warmth curdling into doubt. Her efforts to charm suddenly felt like wasted breath. With a clouded expression, she slid her empty lunchbox across the table, her tone cooling to a dismissive chill. “I’m done. Take care of this, will you?”
“Alright,” Valeria murmured, rising with a grace that belied the shift in Miranda’s demeanor. She retrieved the lunchbox and stepped into the hallway, where a cluster of colleagues returning from lunch greeted her with curt nods. Her warm smile faltered as their eyes snagged on the lunchbox, exchanging knowing glances that whispered of judgment.
Back in the office, Valeria barely settled when Miranda, perched like a monarch on her invisible throne, flung a thick stack of documents onto her desk with a thud. “Make copies of these,” she ordered, her voice dripping with disdain, sharp as a blade’s edge. “And since the sixth-floor cleaner’s out sick for a few days—and your afternoon’s looking light—scrub that area spotless. Don’t skip the water dispenser. When you’re done, haul a new jug up from the first floor.”
The tasks were menial, far beneath an assistant’s purview, a deliberate heap of indignities. Her colleagues watched in stunned silence, their gazes flickering with pity and unease. A spark of defiance flared in Valeria’s chest, but she tamped it down, her secret mission—to blend in, to observe—outweighing the urge to rebel. This was her lens into the office’s undercurrents. With a composed nod, she gathered the documents and glided to the copier, her movements deliberate, a quiet defiance in their precision.
Miranda tracked her every step, arms crossed, a smug grin curling her lips. Convinced of Valeria’s fragility, she scoffed under her breath and swept out of the room, leaving a wake of haughty triumph.
Across town, Adriana buzzed with elation, her discovery that Diego wasn’t Starbright’s vice president fueling a giddy thrill. At noon, she ladled steaming chicken soup into a pot, its rich aroma curling through her kitchen as she plotted a celebratory visit to Dominic. His office crowned the Barnett Group’s top floor, a sanctum rarely disturbed, its door ajar like an invitation. She slipped inside, the soft clack of her heels muffled by the carpet, and found him hunched over his phone, lost in its glow.
Intent on a playful surprise, she tiptoed behind his chair, her voice a soft murmur. “What are you watching?”
Dominic jolted, spinning to meet her beaming face, but the warmth in her smile withered as her eyes snagged on his screen. A storm of emotions churned within her—jealousy, betrayal, a bitter ache—as she glimpsed the video: a race, Valeria’s car slicing through the track with a grace that still haunted him. Damn it, she seethed inwardly, does that wretched woman still have him ensnared? A flicker of disdain shadowed her features, sharp and fleeting.
Dominic sensed the shift, hastily killing the video and turning to her with a forced casualness. “What brings you here?” he asked, his tone a thin veil over his unease.
Adriana swallowed her fury, clinging to her composure as she set the soup on his desk with a strained smile. “You’ve been skipping meals,” she said, her voice straining for care. “I made you chicken soup—please, try it.”
Dominic lifted the lid, steam curling upward as he scooped a spoonful, a faint warmth blooming in his chest. Adriana’s eyes twinkled with anticipation, her lashes fluttering as she leaned closer. “How is it, Dominic?”
He hesitated, the taste stirring ghosts of memory—Valeria, standing in this same office years ago, offering soup with that same hopeful gaze. Back then, he’d bristled at her attention, picking apart her efforts with cruel jabs just to see her flinch. Now, Adriana’s soup slid down his throat, competent yet hollow, missing a note he couldn’t name. Biting back the truth, he forced a nod, his smile subdued. “It’s delicious,” he said, the lie soft but steady.
Adriana exhaled, relief softening her tension as her mood lifted. “I’m so glad you like it,” she replied, her voice brightening. Then, as if struck by a sudden spark, she pivoted. “Oh, by the way—I called a friend this morning. Turns out Diego isn’t the vice president of Starbright Group!”
Dominic’s grip tightened on the spoon, his features darkening as surprise and anger collided within him. Since learning Valeria was Sierra, his icy contempt had begun to thaw, tendrils of doubt softening his resolve. But now, this revelation reignited his scorn—she’d not only deceived him but spun a bold lie to Javier too. Manipulative, untrustworthy—a serpent in disguise. Severing her from his life had been the wisest cut of all.
