Chapter 12: Secrets Behind the Velvet Walls

I clicked the answer and from the other end, Emily ended the call and now it was me and Marcus, and Marcus said immediately.

"Enjoying the luxury now, huh?" He laughed through the phone. I could hear it clearly, like he was right there beside me, whispering into my ear with his foul breath. I could almost picture it too, his brown teeth peeking through that crooked grin of his, and those gold ones fixed in the front row of his mouth glinting under the expensive fluorescent light. It made me clench my jaw.

I didn’t respond immediately. Instead, I just let out a small huff and slowly sat back into the plush chair in the room. It was one of those luxury chairs that made your body sink in as if it was molded specially for you. The fabric was soft, velvet maybe, colored in deep wine red that matched the tone of the thick drapes around the window.

"Mr. Marcus," I started, my voice as calm as I could make it even though my hand was gripping the armrest so tight that my knuckles turned pale, "when you called before, it wasn’t the right time. That was why I answered like that."

He was silent for a second, probably trying to read between the lines. With Marcus, timing and respect mattered. You never ended a call on him unless he dismissed you. I knew better. I was trained better. Still, he didn’t lash out. Instead, he replied casually, "You don’t worry about that, Aria."

But I wasn’t stupid. I knew Marcus well enough to know he would circle back to it. He always did. Nothing got past him, not even the tiniest tone in my voice.

I looked around the room again as I spoke, trying to keep my voice steady, "I know you will still talk about it again."

Marcus let out a hum like he was smiling, satisfied that I knew the rules of his game. I had been working for him since I turned twenty. Before that, I only knew him from a distance. He was my parents’ friend and well, more like an associate. They weren’t close, but he was always there, lurking around the edges of my life like a shadow waiting for the right time.

When my parents died,no, when they were murdered by the hands of the Malcovichs, Marcus never showed up. But he later showed up with soft-spoken words and fake condolences, but beneath all that sympathy, there was an offer. An opportunity to strike back. And I took it. Gladly. I was twenty by then, broken, angry, and full of revenge.

"Mr. Marcus," I said suddenly, sitting up straighter in the chair. My voice dropped a little. "Ethan almost found out about you. In the car."

There was silence on the other end again. Not complete silence though. I could hear the faint clink of a glass, maybe ice, maybe something stronger.

Then he finally replied. His voice was low, serious. "I trained you for this, Aria. I warned you about the Malcovichs. Do not mess things up. Do not get weak. Play your part well… You know why we are doing this, right?"

I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded slowly even though he couldn’t see me. "Yes, Mr. Marcus."

My father was a good man. He built his company from the ground up with his bare hands, and the Malcovichs stole everything from him. His shares, his factory, his reputation, even his life. I wanted to take it all back. I wanted them to pay. Especially his son,Ethan.

Marcus let out a sound. It was not quite a laugh, more like a weird noise deep from his throat, and it made my skin crawl. "Listen, Aria," he said with a tone that made me sit upright again, "whatever you're doing in that apartment, just remember… I have got my eyes on you."

He ended the sentence with a sharp laugh that didn’t feel funny at all. It felt like a threat. My heart skipped a beat.

"What?" I asked, blinking. "What do you mean by that?"

Of course, I knew he had ways of watching. But the way he said it just now… it was different. Too specific.

I looked up at the ceiling. There were cameras in the room, yes, but they were the usual ones. The ones every luxury apartment like Solara Heights came with. Security, they called it. Nothing I hadn’t seen before.

But there was something more. My stomach twisted.

Marcus spoke again, this time his voice was more cheerful, like he had just delivered some kind of joke only he found funny. "Enjoy your luxurious apartment, Aria."

And just like that, the line went dead.

My hand dropped from my ear slowly. My skin felt cold. I stood up immediately and walked to the center of the room.

"Nexa," I said, trying to keep calm, "turn off all lights. Close the curtains."

There was a mechanical sound. The curtains slid shut with a soft whoosh, and the lights blinked off one after the other. Darkness filled the room.

I took a deep breath and reached for my phone. My fingers moved quickly as I tapped an icon. It was an app Emily had trained me on. It scanned rooms for hidden devices. And the moment the scan started, tiny red dots began blinking all around the room on the screen.

My eyes widened. One by one, I turned slowly in a circle. The red blinks were not in just obvious places. They were in the corners, in the ceiling, inside the lamp, near the television, under the glass coffee table. Even behind the air-conditioning vent.

And then I looked toward the bathroom.

No…

I walked in slowly. My steps were careful. My hands trembling.

The bathroom looked like something out of a hotel magazine. White marble everywhere. A freestanding tub in the center. Mirrors that stretched from wall to wall. And right in the top right corner, almost invisible to the bare eye… was a blink.

Red.

Blinking.

A camera.

I stared at it for a long time. Then I screamed, "Marcus!"

My voice echoed against the walls.

I walked back to the center of the room. I grabbed the side of the red dress I wore. It was expensive, designed for the gala alone, just to catch Ethan’s eyes. But now, I didn’t care, it's of no use anymore.I ripped it apart, tearing it down the seams like it was nothing but paper. I didn’t care anymore.

With shaking hands, I pulled out a tube of glue from my drawer and marched back to the bathroom. I climbed onto the edge of the tub, reached for the blinking camera, and slapped the torn fabric over it. I pressed hard. I waited until the blinking stopped.

No more red light.

My breathing was loud in the room. Loud and angry.

I climbed down slowly. I looked into the mirror. My reflection stared back. Angry. But determined.

"Fuck you, Marcus," I whispered, my voice shaking but loud enough for the walls to hear.