Lyra's POV - Admin Floor
They didn't call it a promotion.
Just a "temporary reassignment."
Michael Lin's team had hit a scheduling choke point mid-quarter, and someone in oversight needed to audit a project pipeline that touched half the Strategic Operations flow. Dara handed Lyra the folder with an apologetic shrug and a quiet, "Just help out where you can."
So she did.
Two hours later, she was sitting three floors up in a sleeker workspace, surrounded by people who didn't look up unless something was on fire. Michael greeted her like he'd expected this all along.
"We're syncing with Legal on the Artaxis bid," he said. "Start with the comparative notes in red. Highlight the overlaps. Track where the partner ratios dip below margin."
Lyra nodded. "Understood."
He smiled like that was the right answer.
It was only her second week back since the gala. But something was shifting, quietly.
---
Cassian's POV – Office
It wasn't the numbers that drew him in.
It was the phrasing.
He flipped through the Artaxis prep packet again. One of three reviewed late that evening. The margins held no fluff. No ego. Just clean analysis with a kind of unspoken authority.
> If incentive clauses drop below the retention floor, pull the trigger. Otherwise, we're dressing a crack as a ceiling.
He flipped to the summary page. In the revision field, one name:
> Internal contributor: L. Elmont (admin support, on rotation)
He hadn't realized she'd been reassigned. That explained the proximity. The scent traces in the hallway.
He tapped the line again with his pen, just once.
That voice. Again.
---
Lyra's POV – Admin Floor
"You've been reassigned?" Talia raised her brows. "To the quiet fox den upstairs?"
"Temporarily," Lyra said, stirring her tea. "Michael needed support for two project audits."
"Sure, sure. Next thing you know, they'll have you rewriting the CEO's speeches."
Lyra made a face.
"Seriously though," Talia leaned in.
"How does it feel?"
Lyra hesitated.
Then, without looking up: "It feels like the work actually matters."
Talia didn't smile. She just nodded. "Then maybe it's time someone up there sees that."
---
Cassian's POV – Executive Wings
The revisions came late in the day. Another folder from Theo, labeled simply: Artaxis Review – Prelegal Pass.
Cassian waited until the city light dimmed before opening it.
"We're dressing a crack as a ceiling."
Her words again. Precise. Sharper than most department heads. He flipped to the contributor note.
L. Elmont (admin support – temporary)
The name was almost buried. But not to him.
He traced one bracket in the margin. Slanted left. Practical. Distinct.
She wasn't just visible now.
She was unforgettable.
---
Lyra's POV
She wasn't copied on the email chain.
She wasn't mentioned in the meeting invite.
But she recognized her words.
> "We're dressing a crack as a ceiling."
Someone said it in Ops review. In a room she wasn't in.
She froze at her desk. A pen still in her hand.
She hadn't said it out loud. But her voice had made it there anyway.
That night, at home, Lyra sat cross-legged on the floor beside her bed. Alexa curled near her hip.
She thought of the file, of the meeting, of her name almost appearing on someone's radar.
It's working.
Her pulse ticked faster.
Then softer. Half breath, half ache:
Do you really want to stay invisible forever?