Anna looked at him in silence for a long moment. «And who do you want to become?»
«Someone worthy of the courage you showed. Someone who doesn’t let fear or blind loyalty get in the way of doing what’s right.»
A cold Chicago wind blew between them, and Anna pulled her coat tighter around her. «It’s chilly out here,» she said, glancing around.
«There’s a coffee shop on the corner. We can talk there.»
The small cafe was nearly empty. They sat at a table by the window, two steaming cups of hot chocolate between them. «So,» Anna said, stirring her drink with a small spoon, «what did you find out about Leandro and Sophia?»
David pulled a folder from his backpack and laid it on the table. «Everything. The entire plan.» He opened the folder and showed her the documents. «The shell company, the wire transfers, the fake contract. They were planning to steal 80% of my assets.»
Anna flipped through the papers, and David saw her eyes widen as she read. «This is worse than I imagined.» She looked up at him. «What are you going to do?»
«Expose them publicly on Monday.» David leaned in closer. «But I need your help.»
«My help?»
«You still have the original photos, the recordings. I need your evidence to complete the case.»
Anna fell silent, thinking it over. «And then? After Leandro and Sophia are exposed?»
«Then…» David hesitated. «Then I’d like you to come back to the company. Not as a cleaner, as Vice President of Operations.»
Anna nearly choked on her hot chocolate. «Vice President?»
«You have the knowledge, the experience, and the integrity. The company needs people like you in leadership.»
«David, this is…» Anna shook her head. «It’s crazy. I’m just…»
«You’re not ‘just’ anything,» David interrupted. «You’re smart, brave, and honest. Those are exactly the qualities I need by my side.»
They sat quietly for a few minutes, the weight of the conversation settling between them. «Can I think about it?» Anna asked finally.
«Of course. But Anna…» David reached across the table, his hand almost touching hers. «No matter what you decide about the job, I’d like to have you in my life, in some way.»
Anna looked at his hand, then at his eyes. «David, we come from very different worlds.»
«No,» he said, shaking his head. «I used to think that, but I don’t anymore. We’re just two people who believe in doing what’s right, even when it’s hard.»
When they left the cafe, night had fallen. The lights of Chicago sparkled around them, creating an almost magical atmosphere. They walked slowly toward the subway station, neither in a hurry to end the night.
«David,» Anna said as they reached the entrance to the station. «Thank you for today, for listening, for being different than I thought you were.»
«And thank you for giving me a second chance. I know I didn’t deserve it.»
They stood under the streetlights, looking at each other. Anna looked beautiful, her cheeks pink from the cold, her eyes shining under the stars. «Anna,» David stepped closer.
«Yes?»
«Can I kiss you?»
Anna hesitated only for a second, then nodded. David kissed her gently at first, then more confidently as she responded. It was a sweet kiss, full of promises and new beginnings.
When they pulled apart, they were both smiling. «This just made things more complicated,» Anna said, but her smile showed she didn’t mind.
«The best things in life usually do,» David replied.
Anna laughed and walked toward the subway entrance. «I’ll call you tomorrow,» she said, «to go over the plan for Monday.»
«And to talk about us.»
«And to talk about us,» she confirmed before disappearing down the stairs.
David stood on the sidewalk for several minutes, gazing at the stars above Chicago. For the first time in weeks, he felt like everything was going to be okay. On Monday, he would face Leandro and Sophia, but this time, he wouldn’t be alone. He would have Anna by his side, and that made all the difference.
On Monday morning, David arrived at the office determined to carry out his plan. He had spent all of Sunday with Anna, planning every detail of how to expose Leandro and Sophia. They had scheduled a board meeting for two o’clock, where they would present all the evidence of the betrayal.
David stored the incriminating documents in his personal safe and prepared copies to hand out during the meeting. He was nervous but confident. Anna would arrive at noon to go over the final details.
At 10 o’clock, Leandro walked into his office without knocking. «David, we need to talk.» His voice had a tone David had never heard before—cold, threatening.
«Sure,» David said, trying to stay calm. «About what?»
Leandro closed the door behind him and stepped closer to David’s desk. «About your little late-night investigation on Friday.»
David’s blood ran cold. «I don’t know what you’re talking about.»
«Don’t lie to me, David.» Leandro sat down in the chair across from the desk, crossing his legs with arrogance. «Do you think I’m stupid, that I wouldn’t notice someone accessing confidential files in the middle of the night?»
David kept a neutral expression, but inside, he was panicking. «I have the right to access any file in my own company.»
«Oh, yes, your company,» Leandro gave a humorless laugh. «For now.»
«What’s that supposed to mean?»
Leandro pulled his phone from his pocket and placed it on the table. «It means I know exactly what you found. I know you talked to the cleaning lady. I know you’re planning to expose me this afternoon.»
David stood up suddenly. «How do you…?»
«How do I know?» Leandro interrupted. «David, you’re even more naive than I thought. You think I don’t have people keeping me informed about your every move?»
The office door opened again, and Sophia walked in. She looked perfect as always, but there was something cold and cruel in her eyes that David had never seen before. «Hello, David.» She walked over and kissed Leandro on the cheek. «I missed you over the weekend.»
«Sophia?» David looked at her, confused. «What are you doing here?»
«I’m here to witness your surrender.» She sat on the armrest of Leandro’s chair, running her fingers through his hair possessively.
«Surrender?»
Leandro smiled and unlocked his phone. «David, you’re going to cancel that ridiculous board meeting. You’re going to destroy all the evidence you’ve gathered. And you’re going to sign the Sterling Corporation contract today.»
«Are you out of your mind? After what I found out about you two?»
«No,» Leandro said, turning the phone toward David. «After what I found out about you.»
On the screen, David saw pictures of himself entering Anna’s building in Pilsen, talking to her at the cafe, and kissing her on the street.
«So what?» David frowned. «There’s nothing wrong with…»
«Oh, isn’t there?» Sophia leaned forward. «David, you used inside company information to locate a former employee. Then you used company funds to pay for her sister’s surgery.»
David felt the ground shift under him. «How do you know about…?»
«About the anonymous $200,000 donation?» Leandro laughed. «David, David, did you really think you could move that kind of money without me knowing?»
«That doesn’t prove anything illegal.»
«It proves abuse of power.» Sophia pulled a folder from her purse. «It proves you were romantically involved with an employee who had access to sensitive information. It proves you paid a large amount of money to influence a witness.»
David grabbed the documents and flipped through them. They were forged contracts, fake emails, and altered bank records—everything designed to make it look like he had used the company to benefit Anna in exchange for favors. «This is all fake.»
«Of course it is,» Leandro said, standing up. «But who’s going to believe you? A CEO who got involved with a cleaning lady and used company money to impress her?»
«You can’t do this.»
«We can, and we will,» Sophia said, stepping closer to David. «Unless you cooperate.»
David looked at Leandro and Sophia, two people he had once loved and trusted completely, and now he saw that he had never really known them. «What do you want?»
«I already told you,» Leandro said, sitting back down. «Cancel the meeting. Destroy the evidence. Sign the contract.»
«And if I don’t…?»
Leandro tapped his phone again and showed David another photo. It was Anna and Maria leaving the hospital after an appointment. «Then Ms. Santos and her sick sister will find out what happens to people who stick their noses where they don’t belong.»
David felt pure rage run through him. «Don’t you dare threaten them.»
«It’s not a threat, David. It’s a promise,» Leandro said, putting his phone away. «I have contacts all over Chicago. One phone call from me, and Anna Santos won’t find work anywhere. And her little sister… well, accidents happen, especially with people in poor health.»
«You’re a monster.»
«I’m a businessman,» Leandro said, adjusting his tie. «And you, my old friend, are a problem that needs to be dealt with.»
David looked at Sophia, searching for some trace of the woman he had fallen in love with years ago. «Sophia, do you really agree with this? Threatening innocent people?»
Sophia laughed, a cold, calculated sound. «David, you were always so romantic, so idealistic.» She stepped closer to him. «Do you really think I broke up with you because we weren’t compatible?»
«Didn’t you?»
«I broke up with you because you were poor.» Her words hit like a slap. «Well, not poor exactly, but limited. You were building a small company, dreaming small. Leandro offered me the chance to be truly wealthy.»
David stared at her, stunned. «You never loved me.»
«I loved your ambitions. I loved the potential of what you could become,» Sophia said, touching his face with fake tenderness. «But when I saw that Leandro was willing to do whatever it took to succeed while you clung to your moral principles, well, the choice was obvious.»
«Moral principles?» David pulled her hand away. «You say that like it’s a bad thing.»
«In the business world, it is,» Leandro said as he stepped closer. «David, you built a $500 million company while limiting yourself with ethics and morals. Just imagine what you could have achieved if you’d been a little more flexible.»
«I don’t want to achieve anything that way.»
«And that’s why you’ll lose everything,» Sophia said, moving to stand next to Leandro. «Because in the end, people like you always lose to people like us.»
David looked at the two of them, holding hands, smiling with cruelty. Fifteen years of friendship with Leandro, two years in a relationship with Sophia—all built on lies.
«You have one hour to decide,» Leandro said, checking his expensive wristwatch. «Noon. Either you sign the contract, or we destroy you and everything you care about.»
«And Anna?» David asked. «If I cooperate, will you leave her alone?»
«If you cooperate and keep your mouth shut, Anna Santos and her sister can go on living their small, insignificant lives in peace,» Leandro said, opening the door. «But if you try to cross us again…» He didn’t finish the sentence, but the threat was clear.
