Chapter 211: Chapter 211

Violet

Did I need sleep or just a strong cup of coffee?

I wondered about Elijah’s weird behavior as I went back to my cabin and the door clicked shut behind me.

I stood there for a moment, my hand still resting on the handle, my mind replaying that single, impossible detail over and over again.

Was he sick? Was he exhausted?

But that redness didn’t look like either.

I exhaled slowly and walked to my desk, lowering myself into the chair as I pressed my fingers against my temple, trying to ground myself in something logical, something that made sense.

I imagined it!

I had definitely imagined it!

There was no other explanation that didn’t spiral into something absurd.

He was infuriating, manipulative, unpredictable, but he wasn’t… that.

Was he?

My jaw tightened at the thought, irritation rising alongside the unease. This was exactly what he did. He would disrupt, confuse, and throw me off balance until I started questioning my own judgment instead of his actions.

I let out a sharp breath and reached for the laptop, flipping it open with more force than necessary to see just one unread email waiting for me.

That was it.

There were no instructions, no formal briefing and no detailed expectations.

I clicked it open to read a single line sent by him.

Create whatever you want. No restrictions.

My brows drew together slowly as I read the line again, that spark of hope flaring up again.

No restrictions.

A hollow laugh almost escaped me.

So this was the game now?

Be the monster. Break everything. And then… hand me freedom as if it meant something?

“What are you trying to do?” I murmured under my breath, leaning back in my chair as I stared at the screen.

My fingers tapped lightly against the desk as I shook my head. Whatever his motive was, I wasn’t going to waste my energy trying to decode it right now.

A soft knock pulled me out of my thoughts.

“Come in.”

Anya stepped in, tablet in hand, her posture straight and attentive. “Is there anything I can assist you with, ma’am?”

I studied her for a brief moment, grounding myself again before replying, “Call me Violet. And can you please get me a cup of coffee? Strong”

“Yes ma’am, I mean Violet”

Anya disappeared down the hallway and returned five minutes later with a strong cup of coffee.

“Anything else?”

“Could you also arrange a quick meeting with the design team. I want everyone present.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The meeting room filled steadily, the designers gathering one by one. Some looked expectant, some cautious, some simply tired in the way people got when they worked under someone who made their lives difficult.

For a fleeting second, Mirella’s face flashed in my mind.

I wouldn’t be that.

“Good morning,” I began once everyone had settled. “I’m Violet. I believe most of you already know that I’ll be heading the design division from now on.”

A few nods followed, some more enthusiastic than others.

“I also want to thank you for preparing for my surprise welcome party,” I continued, allowing a faint, almost dry smile to touch my lips. “I believe the CEO keeps everybody up on their toes.”

I knew he would have given them all barely an hour to arrange everything and I didn’t want them to hate me for it.

A small ripple of amusement passed through the room, the tension easing just slightly.

“I’m not here to micromanage,” I added, letting my gaze move across them, meeting each pair of eyes briefly. “And I’m definitely not here to make your lives harder than they need to be. If you have ideas, concerns, or even disagreements, I expect you to bring them to me directly.”

I took a pause to see everybody nodding and then repeated, “Anyone here can approach me. You don’t need permission for that.”

A few shoulders relaxed which was enough for now.

The meeting moved on to brief introductions, a quick overview of ongoing projects, timelines, and responsibilities.

After getting a rough idea of how things went here I wondered if Elijah was being literal with his words ‘no restrictions’

Back in my cabin, I barely had time to sit before I found myself asking, almost absently, “Where is he?”

Anya looked up from her tablet. “Sir left for the day.”

I blinked. “For the day?”

“Yes.”

A strange feeling settled in my chest which wasn’t relief nor was it disappointment.

I nodded slowly. “Alright. Get me the design files from the previous year. All launches, collections, everything.”

“On it.”

Anya returned with the files soon after that were neatly compiled and organized in a way that made navigation easy.

I started going through them one by one.

At first glance I noticed conventional designs and safe choices that aligned with market trends. Nothing bad. In fact, everything was technically sound, commercially viable.

But it was also…

Predictable.

The same patterns repeated with minor variations but nothing that truly stood out. Nothing that made me pause and feel something beyond professional acknowledgment.

A faint frustration began to build. This was what the biggest name in the industry was producing?

Safe designs for a safe market?

Then why bring me here?

My gaze drifted back to the email still open on the corner of the screen staring at the last two words.

And suddenly something stirred inside me. It was merely a flicker, a flash of what I had long forgotten.

I hastily grabbed the stylus and my breath slowed as if it had been waiting for the right moment to surface.

And then I began to draw.