Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Midday….
-D
Aliana arrived at Titan Group, accompanied by the ever–loyal Elena by her side. She entered the lobby with effortless grace.
The lobby was breathtaking–gleaming marble floors, towering glass walls, and a crystal chandelier that exuded luxury. Yet no grandeur could mask the wave of shock that swept over the employees the moment they realized who had just walked in.
Whispers rose around her. Curious, startled, and speculative eyes turned her way.
“That’s Aliana Zavier? Alicia’s twin?” a staffer whispered to a colleague.
“Yeah. But they look exactly alike… I thought it was Alicia for a second,” the friend replied softly.
“It’s like seeing a ghost…”
Aliana ignored the murmurs. Her eyes were fixed ahead–on one goal: facing Andrian Velor.
Raised in a mafia family, Aliana had long mastered the art of tuning out noise. She knew how to walk through fire without flinching.
With steady steps, she headed for the executive–only elevator. Elena followed closely, visibly uncomfortable under the scrutiny. Inside the lift, Aliana pressed the button for the top floor–where the CEO’s office awaited.
When the elevator opened, Aliana stepped out with complete confidence, Elena trailing behind, still uneasy.
The top floor was modern, elegant, and cold–polished marble, expansive glass walls, and minimalist furniture conveyed efficiency over warmth.
Andrian’s personal assistant, Nadia Bennet, a young woman with neatly tied hair and a crisp uniform, rose instantly from her desk at the sight of Aliana. Her face changed with surprise, as if she couldn’t believe who had arrived.
“Miss Alicia! Oh–sorry, I mean Miss Aliana,” Nadia stammered, her cheeks flushed. “You’re here?”
“I want to see Andrian,” Aliana said flatly.
Nadia hesitated, then said,
“M–Mr. Andrian is currently in a meeting. Would you like to wait?”
Aliana gave a brief nod–put her body was already moving toward the large mahogany double doors without waiting for permission.
“W–wait, Miss!” Nadia hurried from her desk, trying to intercept her.
“Please, you can’t enter Mr. Andrian’s office without permission.”
Aliana stopped and turned to her with a slight frown.
“What do you mean?” she asked sharply, but calmly.
“Only those who have been authorized may enter Mr. Andrian’s office,” Nadia explained, her voice low but firm.
“Please don’t make this difficult for me, Miss Aliana. I’m just following orders.”
Aliana felt a flicker of anger in her chest, but she controlled it. She studied Nadia’s face–trying to determine if the woman was being rigid or simply doing her job.
Suddenly, an image of Alicia flashed in her mind. Her gentle, patient sister… the woman Andrian had been engaged to for years.
“Did Alicia ever go through this?” Aliana thought darkly.
She turned to Elena, who stood not far behind, tension in her expression.
“Elena,” Aliana called quietly. “Did Alicia ever come here to see Andrian?”
Elena was startled by the question. Her eyes widened slightly.
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“Yes, Miss. But… Mr. Andrian often wasn’t in his office.”
“And what did she do then? Did she just leave?”
Elena bit her lip, hesitant to speak.
“Elena?” Aliana pressed, her gaze sharp.
Elena lowered her head, her voice barely a whisper.
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“Miss Alicia would wait outside the office for hours. And even then… sometimes she still didn’t get to see him.”
Aliana’s eyes narrowed.
“Where did she usually wait?”
Elena glanced toward the nearby lounge and pointed subtly.
“Over there, Miss. In that waiting area.”
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Aliana turned her gaze toward the spot–a small room with cream–colored sofas and a coffee table. It looked cozy at first glance. But the image of Alicia sitting there for hours, hoping to be acknowledged by a man who clearly didn’t care, made Aliana’s blood boil.
She turned back to Nadia, her stare sharp as a blade.
ww
S
“So my sister… Alicia, Andrian’s fiancée, was also one of the people denied access
to
his
Nadia instantly tensed. She swallowed hard before answering with
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shaky
valce
“That… that wasn’t my decision, Miss. I was only following instructions…”
“I’m not asking who made the decision,” Aliana cut her off coldly.
e qu
བ་བད་ན་ག་ན་ནང་་་ར་་ད་ས་ཆད་ནད་རིང་ང་ནན་ཅན་དང་་་་་་
“I’m asking if Alicia was one of the people who didn’t receive permission from Andrian.”
Nadia hesitated, then gave a small nod.
“Yes, Miss.”
《 ཆ་ད་ ད་ ་ད་ན་ན་བན་ཅང་ར་ ང་ར་ར་ད་
Aliana’s hands clenched at her sides. A surge of fury filled her chest—but she kept her face composed, unreadable.
“Bastard,” Aliana muttered under her breath.
“So this is how Andrian treated Alicia.”
Her mind burned with rage. Her kind, fragile sister had been humiliated, ignored, treated like she didn’t matter.
Aliana wanted to end Andrian–right then and there.
But she didn’t show it. She looked coldly at Nadia and said firmly:
“I am Andrian’s wife. I do not need anyone’s permission to enter my husband’s office.”
Without waiting for a response, Aliana brushed past Nadia and pushed open the mahogany doors–walking inside without hesitation, ignoring the secretary’s desperate protests behind her.
Inside Andrian’s Office
The room perfectly reflected its owner–professional, minimalist, and immaculate.
A large blackwood desk stood before towering glass windows offering a spectacular view of the city below. Wall–to–wall shelves were lined with perfectly arranged documents and files, while the modern furniture reinforced an undeniable sense of authority.
Aliana stepped inside with calm precision, her eyes sweeping across the space. There was no sign of Andrian yet, but that didn’t diminish her resolve.
“Miss Aliana,” the secretary’s worried voice followed from behind,
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“Mr. Andrian will be out of his meeting in about fifteen minutes. If you’d like, I can—“
“Leave,” Aliana cut her off sharply, leaving no room for negotiation.
“I’ll wait right here.”
Nadia froze, unsure how to respond. She eventually bowed slightly and retreated, leaving Aliana and Elena alone in the office.
Elena approached, her face still tight with discomfort.
“Miss, are you sure this is wise? Mr. Andrian might not be pleased.”
“I don’t care whether he’s pleased,” Aliana replied as she seated herself in the guest chair opposite the desk, crossing her legs gracefully
“I came here to speak. And I won’t leave until I do.”
Elena nodded quietly, opting to sit on the sofa near the door.
Aliana turned her attention back to the room. It was precisely what she expected–professional, efficient, cold.
No family photos. No personal trinkets. Only business awards and books arranged with surgical precision. The absence of anything personal reminded her of what she’d uncovered that morning.
Her thoughts returned to the research she had conducted on Andrian Velor.
Titan Group was one of the largest conglomerates, spanning technology, construction, and energy. It was originally founded by Andrian’s great–grandfather.
His father, Lucian Velor, a visionary tycoon, had elevated the company to new heights–but the road hadn’t been smooth, especially after Lucian’s death.
To Aliana’s surprise, her research revealed something jarring:
Andrian’s appointment as CEO had been strongly opposed by several board members–not because of his qualifications, but because of his background.
Andrian was the son of Lucian Velor’s second wife, Margaret Hale. Though the marriage was legal–with Lucian obtaining formal permission from his first wife, Eleanor Velor–Andrian’s status as “the son of the second wife” had branded him as illegitimate in the eyes of the conservative elite.
Digging deeper, Aliana unearthed the tragedy of Andrian’s childhood.
His mother, Margaret, had died by suicide–driven to the edge by crippling depression and social ostracization. A stunning woman, Margaret had struggled emotionally and never adjusted to life as the wife of a titan. She had become gossip fodder among the elite.
Even more shocking, some board members had objected to Andrian not only because of his mother’s status, but because they feared he might inherit her emotional instability.
Old articles even quoted anonymous sources from the board expressing concern that suicidal tendencies could be genetic, especially for children raised in fractured households.
To them, Andrian was a risk–a man who might one day break.
But what Aliana saw in Andrian’s record was the opposite.
He had never once shown weakness.
He was always composed, ambitious, and fearless. After becoming CEO, he saved Titan Group from a major crisis with bold and often ruthless decisions, sacrificing anything–and anyone–necessary to preserve the company.
“Ale built armor around himself,” Aliana thought as her eyes settled on the vacant executive chair.
“A perfect suit of armor to conceal the scars of his past.”
But the real question remained:
What was beneath that armor?
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Meanwhile, in the boardroom…
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Andrian received a discreet message from his assistant, Victor Hanes, informing him that Aliana was waiting in his office.
His expression shifted–not to anger, but to uncertainty, even discomfort.
“She actually came to my office?” he thought.
“What does she want?”
Though he didn’t show it, Andrian was unsettled.
Aliana’s boldness in coming directly to his workplace without clearance was unusual. Challenging, even.
“Mr. Velor?” one of the directors called, pulling him back to the present.
“Shall we reconvene after the lunch break?”
Andrian turned to him with a steady gaze.
“No. “No. Let’s continue. I don’t like interrupting important discussions.”
Victor, still beside him, hesitated. He wanted to remind Andrian about Aliana, but noticing his boss’s firm focus, he chose to step away quietly.
As he exited the room, Victor felt a twinge of sympathy for Aliana.
He knew Andrian–cold, rigid, and nearly impenetrable.
Being married to a man like that wasn’t easy.
But he was also…. impressed.
Aliana’s decision to come to the office unannounced–and to wait in Andrian’s inner sanctum–was bold.
Even Bianca had never dared disturb Andrian that way.
Andrian returned to his documents, hiding his unease behind an unreadable expression.
But in a quiet corner of his mind, a single question repeated itself:
“What is it that Aliana really wants from me?”
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