Elena's first day back at Cole Industries felt like stepping into a memory she wasn't sure she wanted to remember.
The glass walls, the low murmur of ambition, the scent of coffee and new paper, everything was the same, but she wasn't. She wasn't the naive designer who once believed talent was enough to survive this world.
Now she knew better.
Still, as she stood at the center of the new project floor, a part of her couldn't help but feel the faint pulse of nostalgia.
"Welcome to Phoenix Systems," Sophie said, handing her a sleek tablet. "The files you requested are preloaded. The team reports directly to you now."
Elena smiled faintly. "Thank you, Sophie."
Sophie hesitated before leaving. "Just… watch your back, Ms. Brooks; Things have been strange since you left, Systems glitching, files disappearing. Sometimes it feels like someone's already inside our network."
Elena frowned. "You think it's sabotage?"
Sophie lowered her voice. "I think whatever happened five years ago never really stopped."
A few hours later, Elena sat at her desk, studying her designs. She'd rewritten most of the old code from memory, determined to rebuild the project better, cleaner, stronger. But something felt off.
When she opened one of the archived design models, she noticed a new subfolder she didn't create.
She clicked it.
A series of images loaded on the screen ; blueprints, wireframes, and buried among them, an old photograph.
Her. Standing next to Adrian.
From five years ago.
Her breath caught. It was from the company gala, the night before everything fell apart. She remembered the dress, the champagne, his hand on her back as they'd smiled for the cameras , the illusion of a perfect partnership.
But this photo wasn't from any official source. It was candid, close, intimate.
Someone had been watching.
A chill crept down her spine. She slammed the folder shut and leaned back, steadying her breathing.
Whoever put that there wasn't just hacking files. They were playing mind games.
Meanwhile, Adrian sat in the executive meeting room with the board, his tone clipped and firm. "Effective immediately, all system access will require biometric clearance. No data leaves the building without my authorization."
Frederick Hale leaned back in his chair, his expression calm. "Tightening security, Adrian? Or hiding something?"
Adrian met his gaze evenly. "Protecting something."
Hale's lips curved in a thin smile. "You mean someone."
The room went silent. Adrian didn't answer, he didn't need to. Hale's knowing tone carried a weight that made Sophie, standing at the door, glance nervously between them.
After the meeting, Hale lingered as the others filed out. "A word of advice," he said quietly. "Bringing Elena Brooks back was a mistake."
Adrian's jaw tightened. "The real mistake was letting snakes into my company."
Hale chuckled. "Careful, Adrian. You might not like what you find when you start digging."
He walked out, his polished shoes echoing on the marble floor.
Adrian stood there, staring after him, unease settling deep in his gut.
That evening, Elena was still in her office long after the others had left. The building was quiet, the hum of the air conditioner the only sound.
Her laptop screen flickered- once, twice before going black.
She frowned and reached for the power button, but before she could touch it, the lights in her office dimmed too. Then the monitor flickered back on.
A line of text appeared across the screen:
You shouldn't have come back.
Her pulse raced. "What the hell…"
She reached for her phone to call IT, but the second she picked it up, it buzzed with a new message.
Unknown Number:You can't fix what was meant to burn.
Elena froze. Her gaze darted toward the hallway dark, empty, silent.
Every instinct screamed at her to leave, but before she could move, the glass door of her office slid open.
It was Adrian.
He looked at her, then at the darkened room. "What happened?"
She exhaled shakily. "Someone hacked my system. Again."
He strode in, scanning the monitors. "Show me."
Elena replayed what she'd seen, but the message was gone — erased, as if it had never existed.
"I swear it was there," she said. "They're watching us, Adrian. They've been watching me."
He didn't doubt her ; not this time. Instead, he reached out and touched her shoulder lightly. "You're safe here."
Her voice came out softer. "That's what you said last time."
He didn't flinch. "And I failed you last time. I won't again."
Their eyes locked, and for a moment, everything else disappeared; the fear, the tension, the shadows waiting in the corners.
All that remained was the quiet ache between them, the ghost of something they'd both tried to bury.
Later that night, Adrian reviewed the internal security logs.
The source of the breach was buried deep in the system, routed through multiple proxies. But one name appeared over and over in the server trail.
Project Phoenix – Administrative Access: F.HALE
He leaned back, the realization settling like a weight in his chest.
Hale wasn't just reviving Elena's project.
He was using it to open a backdoor into the company's core systems.
If Phoenix went live, Hale wouldn't just own Cole Industries' designs, he'd control them.
The next morning, Elena found Adrian waiting by the elevator, holding two coffees.
"Late night?" he asked, handing her one.
She gave a wry smile. "You could say that."
"You shouldn't work alone that late," he said.
"Are you planning to babysit me now?"
His mouth curved faintly. "If that's what it takes."
She rolled her eyes but couldn't stop the small smile that tugged at her lips. "You're impossible."
"And you're stubborn," he said. "Some things never change."
Their gazes met again, soft this time, almost gentle and for a fleeting second, the world outside the elevator didn't exist.
But as the doors closed, the elevator panel flickered, showing a message neither noticed:
PHOENIX RISES.
Elsewhere, in his private office, Hale watched the security feed with a satisfied smile.
Adrian and Elena, standing side by side in the elevator, unaware of the silent camera watching them.
He leaned back, sipping his drink. "Perfect. Let the ghosts wake. The more they fall for each other again…"
He tapped the screen, zooming in on Elena's face.
"…the easier it'll be to destroy them both."
That night, Elena dreamed of fire -blue and gold, consuming everything she built. She woke with her heart pounding and a name on her lips.
"Adrian…"