Chapter 9 Underneath The Surface

• The hum of the server room was normally a comfort to Sandra. The blinking lights, the cool temperature, the low whirring sounds—it all represented control, logic, design.
• But this morning, the air felt wrong.
• “Everything looks fine on the dashboard,” she said, frowning. “But the systems are lagging. We’re experiencing irregular spikes in data traffic.”
• Beside her, Marcus, one of her most trusted engineers, nodded. “It’s like someone’s trying to redirect internal operations, but nothing’s tripping the security protocols. It’s… sophisticated.”
• Sandra’s pulse quickened. “Pull the logs from the last seventy-two hours. Cross-check all access points.”
• Marcus hesitated. “Already did. Someone wiped them clean.”
• Her stomach dropped. “Get me a list of every person with super-admin access now.”
• By noon, the boardroom was alive with whispers.
• Steve was in a closed-door meeting with his legal team when Sandra stormed in.
• “Someone is targeting the system I’m rebuilding,” she said. “And it’s someone with high-level access. Possibly board-level.”
• He looked up, alarmed. “Any idea who?”
• “No proof yet. But Ethan Draven had a meeting with one of our outside contractors two days ago. That same contractor had admin clearance for testing. I think he’s in.”
• Steve stood. “We’ll shut it down.”
• “No,” she said. “That’s what he wants. A shutdown confirms chaos. Investors panic. The media pounces.”
• Steve ran a hand through his hair. “So what’s the plan?”
• “I’ll trace it from inside. Quietly. Let them think we’re unaware. Then when we catch them, we make it public.”
• His expression hardened. “This is dangerous, Sandra.”
• She gave a small smile. “So am I.”
• Later that night, Steve and Sandra sat in his penthouse again, tension between them not from distance but from the weight of shared war.
• Steve poured them each a glass of wine. “You never stop fighting.”
• “Neither do you.”
• There was a pause, quiet except for the city hum below.
• “You’ve been different,” Steve finally said. “Since the Rafael story broke. Stronger. More focused.”
• “I had to be,” she said softly. “Because if I let my emotions take over, I’d collapse.”
• He sat beside her. “Then let them go now. Just for tonight.”
• She looked at him, really looked and the armor slipped.
• Sandra set her wine down, then reached for his hand.
• “I was scared, Steve,” she whispered. “That you’d see that part of my life and regret everything.”
• He leaned in, brushing his lips against her forehead. “The only thing I regret is not being the first to fight for you.”
• She looked up, meeting his eyes. “Then fight with me. Not just for the company. For us.”
• Their kiss that followed wasn’t desperate it was certain.
• They made love that night as if anchoring themselves to one another. A slow, tender claiming. A reminder that in the chaos of the outside world, this...they were real.
• The next morning, Sandra woke to a message from Marcus.
• "Found the breach source. It’s coming from inside Ethan’s logistics team. I’m tracing the keystrokes now. We’ll have a name by the end of day."
• Her fingers tightened around the phone.
• The noose was tightening. And this time, Sandra would be the one pulling it.
• But as she moved to get dressed, her phone buzzed again.
• This time with an anonymous message.
• “You’re talented, Sandra. But you’re standing on a trapdoor. Step wrong and everything falls.”
• She stared at the screen. Her heart was steady.
• Because she’d already fallen once and built her empire from the ground up.
• Now she was ready to burn the whole house down if it meant protecting what mattered.
• Steve.
• Lancaster.
• And the future they were building together.