Chapter 1: The Price of Invisible
If invisibility was a superpower, Seraphina 'Sera' Hayes would have been invited to the Avengers years ago. Unfortunately, it only paid minimum wage and a lifetime supply of migraines.
She pressed her palm to her forehead, trying to soothe the dull, persistent ache behind her icy blue eyes. It was 11:30 PM. The office floor of Thorne & Co. was vast, silent, and overwhelmingly empty.
Her voluminous chestnut brown hair felt heavy, hastily secured in a low, impractical ponytail. She was meticulously finalizing the Q3 financial breakdown for COO Thomas, a task that had swallowed her past three nights.
She typed the final number into the spreadsheet, printed the thick stack of papers, and placed them into her worn satchel. A desperate, foolish hope* * *a tiny spark that refused to die* * *flared in her chest.
She reached for the gold foil-wrapped box nestled inside her bag. The Swiss watch, Mark's most desired luxury, had devoured nearly a full month of her meagre overtime pay. This will show him. This will remind him that I am his future, his support. The thought felt hollow, yet she clung to it.
The office door clicked shut behind her.
* * *
The Uber dropped her off near The Phoenix. The expensive restaurant reeked of aged wine, roasted meat, and inherited wealth.
She found the maître d's station. Mark Reynolds was there, seated at a prime booth, laughing loudly. He wasn't alone.
Sitting across from him, sipping champagne with a condescending smirk, was Chloe Simmons. Sera's childhood best friend.
Sera froze. Her icy blue eyes were wide with shock.
Mark's voice carried clearly: "She's just so safe, Chloe. And dull. An invisible girl who will never be more than a tired PA who buys me watches I deserve but can't buy me a future."
Chloe giggled: "She's dead weight, Mark. Who wants a girl whose only goal is to pay off someone else's debts and clean up their spreadsheets?"
The humiliation was absolute. Sera didn't scream or cry. She simply turned. Her departure was silent, swift, and utterly unseen.
* * *
Sera reached the desolate, poorly lit underground parking garage. The rage in her chest was now a crystalline clarity.
She grabbed the gift box. Instead of throwing it, she opened it slowly. She lifted the expensive Swiss watch* * *the symbol of her failed hope* * *and gently dropped it onto the cold concrete floor. Then, she brought the heel of her practical flat down hard, crushing the delicate mechanism into glittering pieces.
Dead weight, is it? We'll see who the dead weight is now, Mark.
She pulled out onto the freeway. The air was thick, charged with an unnatural electrical tension, mirroring the chaos now controlled within her chest. She was moving too fast.
* * *
She didn't see the massive, armored black SUV run the red light. She didn't hear the engine's roar until the last possible second. The sound was closer to a hungry snarl.
A catastrophic, bone-shattering force ripped through her car. The world exploded in a violent symphony of screeching metal and shattering glass.
As her vision swam, a shadow loomed over her through the ruined windshield. He was impossibly tall, overwhelmingly powerful, and terrifyingly beautiful. His hair was a shock of platinum blonde, almost white.
And his eyes.
Staring down at her with a raw, primal focus, they were luminous, predatory golden pools. The gaze was pure, ancient Alpha dominance* * *the last terrifying sight she registered before the profound silence of unconsciousness claimed her.
END OF CHAPTER ONE.