Chapter 3 THE NAME ON THE DOCUMENT

By Tuesday morning, Lena Brooks had discovered three things about working for Alexander Knight.

First, the man barely took breaks.

Second, he expected everyone around him to operate at the same speed he did.

And third, he somehow managed to make a simple request sound like a warning.

She stared at the list of tasks on her computer.

"Does this man ever sleep?" she muttered.

"Are you talking to yourself?"

Lena looked up.

Vanessa Cole stood beside her desk, holding a tablet.

"Just thinking aloud."

"About Mr Knight?"

"About my workload."

Vanessa smiled knowingly.

"You'll get used to him."

"That's what I'm afraid of."

Before Vanessa could respond, Alexander's office door opened.

"Miss Brooks. I need the Sterling documents."

Lena immediately straightened.

"They're ready."

"Bring them."

She gathered the files and followed him inside.

Alexander was standing behind his desk, reading something on his laptop.

"Close the door."

She did.

He pointed towards the chair.

"Sit."

Lena placed the documents on his desk.

"Is this another meeting where I discover that something has gone wrong?"

"You're unusually talkative this morning."

"I'm unusually busy."

He ignored the comment and opened the first folder.

"I need you to review these records against yesterday's financial report."

Lena frowned.

"Am I supposed to check the figures?"

"Yes."

"All of them?"

"Is there a reason you can't?"

"No. I was simply hoping my new job description didn't secretly include becoming an accountant."

Alexander finally looked at her.

"Can you do it?"

"Yes, Mr Knight."

"Then start."

Lena opened the folder.

The first few pages contained ordinary financial information. She checked the dates, amounts, and authorisation signatures.

Everything appeared normal.

Until she reached the final section.

She stopped.

"Something's wrong."

Alexander looked up.

"What?"

"This transfer."

She turned the document towards him.

"According to this report, Sterling Holdings authorised a payment to a company called Northbridge Consulting."

"Yes. We saw that yesterday."

"But the payment doesn't appear in the supporting transaction records."

Alexander took the document.

"Are you certain?"

"I checked twice."

He studied the figures.

"Continue."

Lena examined the next page.

"There's something else. The authorisation number is identical to the one on another transaction."

Alexander's expression changed.

"Show me."

She pointed to the second entry.

"These payments were supposedly authorised on different dates, but they carry the same reference number."

He picked up his telephone.

"Get Daniel from internal audit into my office. Now."

After ending the call, he returned his attention to Lena.

"Did you tell anyone about this?"

"No."

"Good. Don't."

She frowned.

"Why?"

"Because we don't know whether this is an administrative mistake or something more serious."

Lena leaned back.

"You're suggesting someone inside the company could be involved?"

"I'm suggesting that we shouldn't make assumptions."

Before she could respond, someone knocked.

"Come in."

A man in his early thirties entered carrying a laptop.

"Sir, you wanted to see me?"

"Daniel, meet Lena Brooks. My new executive assistant."

Daniel nodded politely.

"Nice to meet you."

"You too."

Alexander handed him the documents.

"I want a complete review of these transactions. Check every authorisation connected to Northbridge Consulting."

Daniel examined the first page.

His expression became serious.

"I'll look into it."

"How long?"

"Give me until tomorrow afternoon."

"You have until tomorrow morning."

Daniel nodded.

"Understood."

He left with the documents.

Lena remained seated.

"Anything else?" she asked.

Alexander looked at her.

"Not yet."

She stood.

"Then I'll get back to work."

"Lena."

Her hand paused on the door handle.

It was the first time he had used her first name since she returned.

She turned.

"Yes?"

"Good catch."

The words were simple, but they surprised her.

"Thank you."

She left before he could say anything else.

For the rest of the morning, Lena concentrated on her responsibilities.

She arranged a meeting with the legal department, confirmed Alexander's afternoon appointments, and prepared the documents required for an investor call.

At lunchtime, she finally escaped to the staff cafeteria.

She had barely sat down when Maya called.

"Tell me everything."

Lena opened her food container.

"There's nothing to tell."

"You're working for Alexander Knight. There must be something."

"He's still annoying."

"That's not news."

Lena laughed.

"He's also investigating some suspicious financial transactions connected to an acquisition."

Maya went quiet.

"That sounds serious."

"It is. Apparently, some records don't match."

"Please tell me you're not getting involved in billionaire scandals."

"I'm an assistant, Maya. Not a detective."

"Good. Stay that way."

Lena smiled.

"I'll try."

When she returned to the executive floor, a woman was waiting beside her desk.

She was elegantly dressed, with long dark hair and an expensive handbag.

"Can I help you?" Lena asked.

The woman looked her over.

"I'm looking for Alexander."

"Do you have an appointment?"

The woman gave a small laugh.

"I don't need one."

Lena maintained her professional expression.

"I'm afraid he's currently in a meeting."

"Tell him Victoria Hayes is here."

Lena checked the schedule.

There was no appointment under that name.

"I'll inform him you're waiting."

Victoria's eyes briefly moved to Lena's identification card.

"You're the new assistant?"

"Yes."

"Interesting."

Lena wasn't sure what to make of her tone.

Before she could ask anything, Alexander's office door opened.

He stepped out.

"Victoria."

The woman immediately smiled.

"Alexander."

He looked towards Lena.

"Clear my next fifteen minutes."

Lena nodded.

Victoria walked past her and entered his office.

The door closed.

Lena returned to her computer.

She had no reason to be interested in the visitor.

None whatsoever.

Still, she couldn't help noticing that Alexander hadn't looked particularly pleased to see her.

A few minutes later, Vanessa approached.

"That was Victoria Hayes."

Lena continued typing.

"Should I know her?"

"She's the daughter of the chairman of Hayes Corporation. Their family has been connected to Knight Global for years."

"Business partners?"

"Something like that."

Vanessa paused.

"Just be careful around her."

Lena looked up.

"Why?"

Vanessa gave her a small smile.

"You'll understand eventually."

That was becoming an irritating habit around this building.

Everyone seemed to know something she didn't.

At 5:40 p.m., most employees had begun leaving.

Lena was finishing the final entries on Alexander's schedule when her computer received an email.

The subject line caught her attention.

URGENT: STERLING ACQUISITION – REVISED DOCUMENTS

She opened it.

There were several attachments, including a spreadsheet containing the latest transaction records.

Lena checked the sender.

It came from the finance department.

She downloaded the document and began comparing the entries with the records she had reviewed earlier.

Then she noticed something.

The Northbridge Consulting payment was gone.

Not corrected.

Not explained.

Gone.

She checked the previous version.

The transaction had been there.

Now it had disappeared completely.

Lena leaned closer to the screen.

"That's strange."

"What's strange?"

She almost jumped.

Alexander stood beside her desk.

"I thought you had left," she said.

"I came back for a file."

She pointed at the screen.

"The finance department sent a revised report."

"And?"

"The Northbridge transaction has disappeared."

His expression became unreadable.

"Show me."

She opened both versions.

Alexander studied them in silence.

"Who sent this?"

"The finance department."

"Forward it to me."

Lena did.

He opened the email on his phone.

"Don't delete either version."

"I wasn't planning to."

"Keep copies of the original attachments."

"Already done."

He looked at her.

For several seconds, neither spoke.

Then he said, "You did well."

Lena raised an eyebrow.

"Is that becoming a regular occurrence?"

"What?"

"You're complimenting my work."

"Don't get used to it."

She laughed softly.

"Wouldn't dream of it."

Alexander almost smiled.

Almost.

Then his phone rang.

He checked the screen and answered.

"Yes?"

Lena returned to her computer, giving him privacy.

She couldn't hear the entire conversation, but one sentence made her pause.

"No. Nobody outside this office should know about the missing transaction."

Alexander ended the call.

"Lena."

She turned.

"Yes?"

"Tomorrow, I want you in my office at seven-thirty."

She stared at him.

"Seven-thirty?"

"We have work to do."

"Of course we do."

He picked up his jacket.

"And Lena?"

"Yes?"

"Whatever you discover about the Sterling documents, bring it directly to me."

Her expression became serious.

"Understood."

Alexander walked towards the elevator.

Lena looked back at her computer.

She had accepted this job because she needed money.

She had expected difficult schedules, demanding meetings, and an impatient billionaire boss.

She hadn't expected to find herself working in the middle of a financial investigation.

And she certainly hadn't expected Alexander Knight to trust her with something he was clearly keeping from everyone else.

For the first time since Monday, Lena wondered whether accepting the job had been a mistake.

Then her phone vibrated.

It was an email notification from an unknown sender.

There was no greeting.

No explanation.

Just one sentence.

Stay away from the Sterling acquisition if you know what's good for you.

Lena stared at the screen.

A second later, the email disappeared.