Chapter 7 - The Promotion
Julian moved with terrifying efficiency. He picked up his desk phone and dialed the basement facilities office.
“Brenda,” Julian said, his voice carrying the icy authority of a CEO. “Send Elena Rossi’s employment file to my office immediately. She is no longer under your supervision.”
“Mr. Sterling?” Brenda stammered on the other end. “Sir, she brought a child into the building, it’s a massive liability—”
“If you ever speak of my niece as a liability again, I will ensure you never work in this city,” Julian snapped. “Send the file.” He slammed the phone down.
Elena watched him, her mind spinning. “Julian, you can't just do this. Victor is the COO. He runs half this building. If he knows who we are—”
“He won't,” Julian interrupted, pulling a sleek black coat from his closet. “Victor thinks David’s family disappeared into the system. He doesn't know you work here. I am moving you and Maya into the executive penthouse on the fifty-fifth floor. It has private biometric security. Victor cannot access it.”
“I can't just move into your home!” Elena protested, standing up. “I am a cleaning lady! People will ask questions!”
“Let them ask,” Julian said fiercely. “As of right now, you are my new Executive Consultant for Philanthropic Acquisitions. Your salary is five hundred thousand dollars a year. You report directly to me.”
Elena stared at him, her jaw dropping. “That’s insane.”
“It’s a fraction of what you and Maya are owed from David’s trust,” Julian replied, his eyes softening as he looked at the little girl holding the stuffed bear. He knelt down to Maya’s eye level. “Maya, how would you like to live in the very top of the sky castle? You can have a whole room just for Barnaby.”
Maya looked at her mother, then back at Julian. “Will you be there?”
May you like
“I will always be there,” Julian promised, the truth of the words catching in his throat. “I’m your Uncle Julian. And nobody is ever going to hurt you again.”
Julian escorted them out of the office through his private elevator. For the first time in ten years, the suffocating ice around his heart began to crack. He had a family to protect. And he had a war to win.
