“9:00 AM at the bureau: A frantic text from her best friend reveals the terrifying mistake that the tyrannical president of the Kane Group had been waiting eight years to execute.”
Part 1: The Wrong Ring at the Wrong Gate
The rain over the city fell like long, silver needles, blurring the neon lights of the hospital district into a chaotic smear of red and blue. Mia clutched her plastic folder tightly to her chest. Inside were her mother’s medical records and a final, brutal ultimatum from the billing department: one hundred thousand dollars, due before the surgery scheduled for noon. If the payment didn’t clear, the life-saving operation would be canceled. Mia had spent the last seventy-two hours exhausting every avenue, pleading with distant relatives, and hitting dead ends until her throat was raw.
Then came Lila. Lila, her closest friend, had managed to set up an desperate arrangement through a matchmaking agency that specialized in contract marriages. A wealthy businessman needed a legal wife immediately to secure a family inheritance, and he was willing to pay a lump sum of precisely one hundred thousand dollars upfront. The terms were clean, transactional, and absolute. They were to meet at the municipal registry office at 9:00 AM, sign the marriage license, exchange the funds, and part ways.
Mia check her cheap digital watch. 8:55 AM.
“Five minutes,” she whispered to herself, her breath freezing in the damp air. “I’ll definitely make it. Thanks, Lila.”
Her phone buzzed violently in her palm. It was Lila, her voice frantic over the speaker. “Mia! Have you really thought this through? Marrying that man… are you sure? I know you’re desperate, but honestly, I don’t know him that well myself. He’s a stranger from an agency. Maybe you should take a breath and think this through.”
“No,” Mia said, her voice dropping into a hard, desperate register. “I have to save Mom, and I’m already here. I don’t have a choice. I’m sorry.”
She ran toward the grand glass doors of the civic building, her boots skidding on the wet marble steps. In her rush, she collided heavily with a broad chest. Documents scattered across the slick stone floor. The man she hit was exceptionally tall—at least six foot two—with thick chestnut hair dusted with rain, wearing a tailored navy suit that screamed absolute authority. He possessed a sharp, aristocratic jawline and intense, icy eyes that seemed to freeze everything they touched.
“Sir! Can you hold this? I’m in a huge hurry!” Mia gasped, shoving a stray folder into his hand as she scrambled to gather the medical papers. She didn’t look at his face. She didn’t have the time to care about an angry businessman. She pulled open the heavy double doors of the marriage bureau and sprinted inside, leaving him standing on the plaza, holding her mother’s cardiology report.
The man stood frozen in the rain, his fingers tightening around the paper. His gaze followed her retreating figure through the glass. “Mia…” he murmured, a sudden, heavy emotion fracturing his otherwise stoic expression. “She really doesn’t remember me.”
Inside the cavernous registry hall, Mia scanned the rows of plastic chairs. Her phone buzzed again. Lila was speaking fast. “Mia, tell me what that man looks like so you don’t miss him. The agency said he’s tall, wearing a dark suit—”
“Six foot two, chestnut hair, tailored suit,” Mia cut in, her eyes locking onto a figure standing near the private registration alcoves. The navy suit matched perfectly. He was leaning against a marble pillar, looking slightly impatient. Mia slammed her phone into her pocket and marched straight up to him.
“Are you my marriage partner?” she demanded, her voice breathless but firm.
The man turned slowly. A dangerous, subtle smile played at the corner of his lips. He didn’t answer immediately; he just studied her faded coat, her wet hair, and the fierce, protective light burning in her brown eyes.
“If it’s not you, who else could it be?” he replied smoothly, his baritone voice sending a strange, disorienting chill down her spine. “You’re late.”
“I know, I’m sorry,” Mia said, pulling the contract marriage forms from her folder. “But we agreed on the terms. A hundred thousand dollars for the marriage license. You get the legal status, I get the funds for my mother’s surgery. You’re not trying to back out now, are you?”
“Of course not,” the billionaire murmured, his amber eyes locking onto hers with an intensity that made the room feel suddenly devoid of air. “To marry you… I’d pay much more than a hundred thousand. Even a million. Even ten million.”
Mia blinked, slightly taken aback by his intense tone, but she dismissed it as the arrogance of a wealthy man. “Let’s go. We don’t have time for poetry.”
They moved into the registration cubicle. The process was a blur of legal text, ink stamps, and administrative finality. Within ten minutes, the clerk pressed the gold-embossed marriage certificate into Mia’s hands. It was done. She was officially a married woman. She looked at the signature on the document—Alexander Kane—but her mind was already racing back to the hospital.
“Looks like getting married isn’t that hard after all,” she muttered, letting out a ragged sigh of pure relief. “The funds… can you wire them to the Franklin VA hospital account immediately?”
“It’s already done,” Alexander said, tucking his copy of the license into his breast pocket. “Your mother’s surgery will proceed.”
Mia’s phone rang. It was Lila again. Mia answered, her voice triumphant. “Lila! I did it! We just signed the papers. The money is clear. Tell Mom I’m on my way!”
There was a terrifying silence on the other end of the line. Then, Lila spoke, her voice shaking with pure horror. “Mia… what are you talking about? The man I introduced you to… the agency partner… he’s been waiting for you in Cubicle 4 for the last three hours. He just called me to ask why you didn’t go.”
The certificate slipped from Mia’s fingers, landing flat against the polished marble floor. The room seemed to tilt violently beneath her feet. She stared at the man standing in front of her—the man who had just bound his life to hers with a legal seal.
“What?” Mia whispered, her face turning instantly translucent. “But… we’re already married.”
Alexander Kane leaned down, picked up the paper, and pressed it back into her trembling palm. His smile was no longer subtle; it was absolute. “Married? Yes. And he’s still waiting for you. Oh my gosh, Mia… it looks like you married the wrong man.”
Part 2: The Billionaire’s Responsibility
“I… I married the wrong man,” Mia stammered, her voice dropping into a terrified whisper. She took a step back, her back hitting the frosted glass of the cubicle. “This can’t be legal. This is an accident. I… I got it wrong. Sir, we have to fix this immediately. Should we schedule a time for a divorce? Right now?”
“No need,” Alexander said, his voice dropping into a low, commanding register that left no room for negotiation. He stepped closer, his massive frame completely cutting off the exit. “There will be no divorce, Mia.”
“But you don’t even know me!” Mia cried, her palms flat against the glass. “You were supposed to meet someone else, and I was supposed to save my mom. This was a mistake!”
“You came to me first,” Alexander said, his amber eyes fixing on hers with an ancient, unyielding certainty. “Since we’re married, you have to take responsibility for me.”
“Responsibility?” Mia let out a short, disbelieving laugh. “Sir, I am a twenty-four-year-old girl with zero assets and a mother in the ICU. I can’t take responsibility for a man who wears suits that cost more than my entire life savings. I’ll pay you back the hundred thousand dollars. I’ll work three jobs. Just… let me sign the annulment papers.”
Alexander reached into his jacket, pulled out a sleek, obsidian fountain pen, and caught her chin gently between his fingers, forcing her to look straight into his eyes. “A hundred thousand dollars? I don’t care about the money, Mia. I’ll add three more zeros to that check. So now… can you take responsibility?”
Before Mia could process the weight of his words, the heavy double doors of the registration bureau burst open. Two men in identical black suits and earpieces marched into the hall, their expressions like carved stone. They stopped right outside the cubicle, bowing deeply to Alexander.
“Mr. Kane,” the lead guard announced, his voice echoing off the high ceiling. “Madam Kane Senior wants you back at Belmont Manor immediately. She has caught word of your sudden departure from the office, and she wants to arrange a formal blind date for you with Miss Collins this evening.”
Alexander didn’t look at the guards. He kept his eyes locked on Mia’s pale face. “No need. Tell my grandmother I’m already married.”
The guard dropped his tablet. The administrative clerk behind the desk gasped loudly. Mia felt her throat go dry. The Kane Group. The tech and real estate empire that owned half the city’s skyline. The man standing in front of her wasn’t just an arrogant businessman; he was the tyrannical president of the most powerful conglomerate in the state.
“Married, sir?” the guard stammered, his fingers shaking as he picked up his device. “But… hasn’t Mr. Kane always had no interest in women? Who could possibly melt an iceberg like him?”
“My wife,” Alexander said simply, sliding his arm around Mia’s waist with a possessive force that left her entirely paralyzed. “Let’s go home, Mrs. Kane.”
“No!” Mia pulled herself free with a sudden, frantic motion. “My mom… her surgery is in twenty minutes. I don’t care who you are, Mr. Kane. I am going to the hospital.”
She didn’t wait for his response. She turned and sprinted out of the bureau into the gray, wet morning, her mind screaming with a chaotic mix of relief for her mother and absolute terror of the man she had just legally chained herself to. She didn’t see Alexander watching her from the top of the marble steps, his hands clutched in his pockets, his face expressionless against the rain.
“Master Alexander,” the butler murmured, stepping up behind him with an umbrella. “Should we detain her?”
“No,” Alexander said, his amber eyes tracking her light blue jacket until it vanished into the subway entrance. “Let her run for today. She has an interview at the headquarters tomorrow morning anyway. She’ll walk right back into my office.”
Part 3: The Private Elevator and the Secret Cleaner
The next morning, the grand glass tower of the Kane Group headquarters rose into the fog like a monument to absolute capitalist power. Mia stood in the marble lobby, her throat tight as she adjusted the collar of her oversized blazer. She had spent the night at her mother’s bedside, watching the steady, healthy rhythm of the heart monitor. The surgery had been a complete success, but the reality of her debt remained. She needed a job immediately to pay off the medical baseline, and Lila had managed to get her an emergency interview at the conglomerate.
“Oh no… I’m going to be late on my first day,” Mia muttered, her eyes scanning the massive directory board. The interview for the maintenance department was on the fourth floor, but the lobby was packed with hundreds of executives in identical gray suits, blocking the main elevators.
In her panic, she spotted a narrow corridor marked with a gold seal. A sleek, black elevator stood open, entirely empty. Mia didn’t think twice. She darted past the velvet ropes and stepped into the car, her fingers frantically stabbing the button for the fourth floor.
“Hey! This way! Get out of there quickly!” a security guard shouted, his face twisting in sudden horror as he ran toward the corridor. “Are you trying to get yourself killed? That’s the CEO’s private elevator!”
“Oh… sorry about that!” Mia gasped, reaching out to stop the doors from closing.
But before her hand could touch the sensor, a long, elegant arm blocked the frame. A man stepped into the small car. Tailored suit. Charcoal wool overcoat. Intense, amber eyes that registered her presence with a terrifyingly calm satisfaction.
The doors slid shut, sealing them into the quiet, gold-lit vacuum.
“The CEO is here…” the guard’s muffled voice faded from the plaza outside.
Mia froze against the mirrored wall. Her heart slammed against her ribs like a trapped bird. “You…” she whispered, her gaze dropping to his left hand. A matching gold wedding band gleamed against his pale skin.
“Good morning, Minister Kane,” Alexander said, his voice a smooth, dangerous baritone that filled the small space. He stood right in front of her, his proximity making the elevator feel microscopic. “Are you really the CEO of Kane Group?” Mia stammered, her knuckles turning white against her folder.
“Of course,” Alexander said, leaning down slightly until his lips were inches from her ear. “You’re standing in my elevator right now, Mrs. Kane. Did you come here to see me?”
“Of course not!” Mia cried, her face turning crimson. “I’m here for an interview!”
Alexander’s eyes narrowed with a sudden, sharp curiosity. “What position? I’ll notify the department head immediately and let the CEO’s wife skip the process.”
Mia felt her stomach turn to ice. The CEO’s wife. If her cousin Sophie—who worked on the executive floor—or the HR director found out she was interviewing for the night-shift cleaning staff, the embarrassment would ruin her family’s remaining pride. She couldn’t let him interfere. She couldn’t let anyone know she was legally tied to this tyrant while she was scrubbing his floors.
“No… no need!” Mia gasped, frantically hitting the emergency stop button as the car passed the third floor. “I can make it on my own! I don’t need your help, Mr. Kane!”
The doors chimed open on the executive suite instead of the maintenance floor. Sophie Collins, Mia’s arrogant cousin, was standing near the secretary’s desk with a stack of files clutched to her chest. She froze, her jaw dropping as she saw Mia step out of the private car, followed closely by the president himself.
“Mia?” Sophie whispered, her eyes wide with shock. “What do you think that girl’s relationship with Mr. Kane is? Could she be Mr. Kane’s girlfriend?”
The secretaries near the printer dropped their coffee cups. “Omg… Mr. Kane actually has a girlfriend? That’s explosive news that could shake the whole building!”
Sophie marched across the marble floor, her face twisting in pure malice as she grabbed Mia’s arm. “Mia! That outfit really doesn’t belong on this floor. Are you done laughing? I need to get to work. How can the gap between us be this huge?”
Sophie tilted her chin up, looking down her nose at Mia. “I got into Kane Group right after graduation through my dad’s high-level connections. Soon, I’ll be above everyone else in this building. And you? You don’t even deserve to meet Mr. Kane. Stop daydreaming, Mia.”
Mia pulled her arm free, her face perfectly calm. “How do you zoom in to know I won’t meet Mr. Kane, Sophie?”
“Think about how to keep me happy,” Sophie sneered, tapping her designer pen against Mia’s folder. “Considering that we are cousins, if I’m in a good mood, I might even be able to help you. I lowered myself to become Mr. Kane’s private secretary just to win him over and become the CEO’s wife. And you? You’re born to clean, hmm? Your job is to keep this whole office spotless. The mop never leaves your hand, understand?”
Alexander stood near the office door, his hands in his pockets, watching the entire exchange with an icy, expressionless stare. He didn’t step in. He wanted to see exactly how far his secret wife would let these people go before she turned to him for protection.
Part 4: The Capitalist and the Rookie
“They’re all busy, rookie,” Sophie said, tossing a heavy plastic bucket at Mia’s feet. The soapy water splattered across Mia’s worn sneakers. “You want me to clean now? Then help out first. When they’re free, you can clean the rest of the floor later. Kane Group isn’t like the trash company you worked at before. Stay sharp, don’t waste a second.”
“You’re such a capitalist,” Mia muttered beneath her breath, gripping the wooden handle of the mop until her knuckles turned pale.
“New girl! Coffee!” an executive shouted from the conference room.
“Fine… I’ll do it,” Mia sighed.
She spent the next four hours running through a gauntlet of administrative hazing. “Take this to Grayson’s zone,” Sophie ordered, shoving a boiling tray of drinks into her hands. “Coffee. No milk, no sugar. Hurry up.”
“Me too! Double milk, double sugar!” another assistant yelled.
“Get this stamp by legal!”
“Copy these files ten times, then send them to finance! Ten copies, rookie! Move!”
Mia’s arms ached from the weight of the paper boxes, and her shoulder stung where a hot drop of espresso had splattered through the lid. She was moving a massive cart of discarded architectural drawings near the main lobby when Sophie stepped into her path on purpose, her designer heel catching the wheel of the cart.
The heavy metal bin tilted. Hundreds of documents spilled across the polished floor, directly over a pair of expensive leather shoes that had just stepped out of the boardroom.
“I knew your family was struggling, so I got you this job!” Sophie shouted immediately, her voice echoing through the entire reception hall, ensuring every executive looked over. “I got you an exemption for training, and this is how you repay me? You bumped into me first!”
“I bumped into you?” Mia said, straightening her spine, her brown eyes locking onto Sophie’s face with a cold clarity. “Why couldn’t you stand properly on your own, Sophie? Your heels are too high for your balance.”
“What?” Sophie gasped, her face flushing crimson as she turned to Alexander, who had just stepped into the lobby surrounded by his vice presidents. “Mr. Kane! She’s my cousin… she begged shamelessly to stay here and work because her family is bankrupt. If you’re really angry at the mess, I’ll fire her myself right now!”
The lobby went dead silent. Executives held their breath, waiting for the tyrannical president to crush the clumsy cleaner who had just ruined the morning reports.
Alexander walked across the room, his footsteps heavy against the marble. He stopped right in front of Mia, his gaze dropping to the red mark on her shoulder where the coffee had burned through her shirt. His face turned into a terrifying mask of pure stone.
“Alexander…” Mia whispered, too exhausted to care about the protocol receipt in her hand. “I was swamped today. Do you know how many copies I made? And how many files I printed?”
“When you were wronged, why didn’t you come to me?” Alexander asked, his voice a low, dark growl that made every vice president in the line flinch.
“I’m just a cleaner,” Mia said, looking down at her mop. “I probably couldn’t even get into your office starting today.”
Alexander turned to the HR director, his voice slicing through the silence like a guillotine. “Promote her to my private cleaner. Effective immediately. Her desk will be inside my suite. Anyone who assigns her a task outside of my personal office will be terminated before nightfall.”
Sophie’s files slipped from her fingers, scattering across the floorboards. The vice presidents scrambled to execute the order. Alexander caught Mia’s wrist, his grip unyielding as he pulled her toward the private elevator.
“Alexander, do you like me?” Mia asked as the doors closed, her voice small against the hum of the engine. “Haven’t I made it obvious enough?” he replied, leaning down until his amber eyes filled her entire field of vision.
“But… why do you like me?” Mia whispered, her heart doing something complicated behind her ribs. “I know the first time we met, you were conquered by my beauty, kindness, cuteness, and gentleness, right?”
Alexander let out a short, rough laugh, his fingers tracing the pale skin of her wrist. “That wasn’t the first time we met, Mia. You really don’t remember eight years ago in Austin, do you?”
Before she could answer, his phone buzzed. It was his grandmother, Old Mrs. Kane. Alexander answered, his voice returning to its normal, chilly distance. “Okay, Grandma… I’ll come home right away. I’ll tell you next time.”
He hung up and looked at Mia. “Alex, do you remember what day it is?” she asked, reading the text on his screen.
“Of course,” he said, his face hardening as he looked toward the glass plaza below. “It’s my grandmother’s eighty-fifth birthday. And the entire family is waiting at Belmont Manor to hand my inheritance to another woman if I show up without a wife.”
Part 5: The Chairman and the Small Pumpkins
The iron gates of Belmont Manor rose like a fortress against the twilight, guarding an estate worth hundreds of billions. Inside, crystal chandeliers illuminated an audience of the city’s social elites, all gathered for Old Mrs. Kane’s seventieth milestone celebration.
Alexander stood in the private study, his expression locked in a cold, unyielding stare as his grandmother adjusted her pearls. “Alex, I’m getting old,” she said, her voice worn soft by years of absolute authority. “I only have one birthday wish tonight. I hope you can find a girl you truly love. At tonight’s banquet, I invited a girl for you to meet—Miss Collins. I think she’s wonderful.”
“No need,” Alexander said, his voice flat. “You already have a granddaughter-in-law. Her name is Mia.”
Old Mrs. Kane dropped her glass. “Mia? You’ve never brought a girl home, Alex. Don’t try to fool me. Besides, what makes this Mia better than Miss Collins? Miss Collins is the kindest girl I’ve ever met. She must have approached you on purpose… she’s tricking you.”
“Tricking me?” Alexander let out a short, cold laugh. “Grandma, you don’t understand Mia. And you don’t understand Miss Collins. When she arrives, you must meet her. Don’t shove every woman you find at me.”
“I won’t meet her!” the old lady snapped. “Miss Collins is an innocent child. If she were truly innocent, could she make the chairman of Kane Group defend her like this?”
Meanwhile, outside the stone walls of the estate, an ordinary city bus sputtered to a halt. Mia stepped onto the gravel driveway, holding a heavy canvas bag. Inside were six small, organic pumpkins she had purchased from a street market—the only gift she could afford with her remaining cash.
“That scavenger lady actually lives in a place like this?” a sharp voice mocked from behind her.
Mia turned. Her ex-boyfriend, Tom Black, stood near a sleek Mercedes, flanked by her cousin Sophie, who was dressed in a lavish Dior gown. Tom’s family owned a minor jewelry partnership with the Kane Group, and his face was twisted in pure, aristocratic amusement.
“Hey, look who’s here,” Tom sneered, stepping into her path. “Isn’t this my dumped ex-girlfriend? What, delivering food now? If you’re here to beg me to get back together… dream on, Mia. We broke up three years ago.”
“I’m not here for you, Tom,” Mia said, her voice perfectly calm as she gripped her bag of pumpkins.
“Then what are you doing here?” Sophie cut in, her designer heels clicking against the gravel. “This is Belmont Manor. The Kane family estate. We’re here to visit the chairman of the Kane Group. You don’t think just anyone can get in here, do you? This is Alexander’s property. What’s wrong, can’t answer my question? Is your friend a security guard here, or a maid?”
The grand front doors opened, and the head butler stepped onto the plaza. Tom instantly smoothed his tailored jacket and marched up the steps, holding a velvet box.
“Mr. Butler, I’m Tom Black,” he announced, his voice booming with unearned confidence. “Remember me? The Black family has jewelry partnerships with the Kane Group. I’m here today to pay my respects to old Mrs. Kane and present her birthday gifts. I prepared a rare ruby from South Africa with great care. Mrs. Kane is sure to love it.”
The butler didn’t look at the box. “Sorry, but our chairman is not receiving general guests today.”
“What?” Tom’s face flushed. “Don’t you think you should ask the chairman before turning us away? Aren’t you afraid of messing up something important and losing your job?”
“This little thing won’t mess up anything important,” the butler said flatly, his gaze moving past Tom to fix on Mia’s canvas bag. “Looks like your warm face hit a cold butt, huh, Tom?” Sophie whispered, glaring at Mia. “What are you so proud of, you poor thing? Get out of here too.”
The butler stepped down the marble stairs, bowing deeply to Mia. “You are Miss… the guest with the small pumpkins?”
“Yes,” Mia said, slightly confused. “I’m here to give a gift too. But they’re just discounted mini pumpkins.”
Tom burst out laughing. “God! She acts like she’s visiting her poor country relatives! We should go, Sophie. Mia, breaking up with you was the best decision I ever made. If you have any sense, get out of here now to save yourself from being kicked out later.”
“Wonderful,” the butler cut through his laughter, his voice ringing with absolute clarity. “This is exactly what the chairman wanted. Miss, please come in.”
Tom’s jaw dropped. Sophie clutched her Dior dress until the seams groaned. “Wait! You can’t be serious!” Tom shouted, lunging toward the door. “We brought a truckload of treasures, but they’re not as good as her bag of rotten pumpkins?”
“Yeah,” the butler said, closing the massive oak door in his face. “The chairman said she only accepts small pumpkins today.”
Part 6: The Power Ring and the Fake Fiancée
Inside the cavernous salon of Belmont Manor, Old Mrs. Kane sat in a velvet armchair, holding one of Mia’s ten-dollar pumpkins like it was made of solid gold. “This is the first time I’ve seen a real villa,” Mia muttered, looking up at the frescoed ceiling.
“Real? Yeah,” the old lady laughed, her bright black eyes twinkling. “I’ve only seen such luxurious places in movies before, Madam. You’re so rich… why are you so thrifty?”
“This money… I’m saving it for my grandson’s wedding,” Old Mrs. Kane said, leaning forward to press a velvet tray into Mia’s lap. On it sat rows of diamond necklaces, luxury watches, and historic tiaras. “Thank you for the pumpkins. I have a gift for you too. Come on, pick whatever you like. Ten thousand, a hundred thousand, a million… take everything.”
Mia stared at the price tags—Hermès, Audemars Piguet, Harry Winston. Her head spun. “My god… this one piece is worth all the clothes I’ll ever wear in my life. Madam, these gifts are too expensive. I can’t accept them. Can I pick something else?”
“Well… if you won’t take the diamonds, I’ll give you my grandson,” the old lady joked, her eyes serious. “You have to pick one, or do you think I’m too old and useless?”
Elena’s eyes darted to the corner of the velvet tray. There sat a plain, unpolished silver band with no stones, looking entirely out of place among the millions. “This ring must be silver,” Mia thought, a small, triumphant smile playing on her lips. “It’s the cheapest thing here. I’m such a genius.”
“Madam, may I have this ring?” Mia asked aloud.
Old Mrs. Kane’s breath hitched. A profound, sudden satisfaction filled her face. “Take it if you like it,” she whispered, sliding the metal onto Mia’s finger. It fit perfectly. “Thank you, child. You have my ring now… no refusing my grandson.”
The next morning back at the corporate headquarters, the atmosphere on the executive floor was thick with tension. Sophie was standing by the secretary’s desk, surrounded by four designers, showing off a heavy platinum ring on her finger.
“Sophie, you accompanied Mr. Kane yesterday to the birthday party,” an assistant cooed. “Could this be a sign that you and Mr. Kane are going to get engaged? Looks like we’ll have to call you Mrs. Kane from now on.”
“Don’t be silly… just business,” Sophie said, though her smile was triumphant. “But Mrs. Kane Senior is really nice to me.”
Mia walked past the desk, holding her cleaning bucket. Sophie instantly stepped into her path, slamming her file onto the cart. “Hello, Mrs. Kane! What are you doing? Let go, Mia! Stay away from Mr. Kane from now on!”
“Why?” Mia asked, setting down her mop.
“Because Sophie will soon be Mr. Kane’s fiancée!” the assistant shouted. “Don’t even think about seducing the CEO! Really… how come? I haven’t heard about it.”
“Does the CEO need to inform a cleaner like you about his marriage?” Sophie sneered. “Some people think being his personal cleaner makes them important. He just needs a maid. She’s forgotten who she is. Ah! What are you doing?”
Mia was calmly pushing her broom across Sophie’s expensive leather shoes. “Sweeping away trash,” she said, her voice flat and rhythmic. “How dare you do this to me? Move, Sophie.”
“Mia, I know you’re interested in Mr. Kane, but you’re really not good enough for him,” Sophie hissed, grabbing Mia’s shoulder. “Last night at the banquet, Mr. Kane announced to everyone that I’m his fiancée. Everyone heard it!”
“Announced to everyone?” Mia lifted her head, her brown eyes filling with a cold, terrifying clarity. “Alexander didn’t even attend the banquet last night, Sophie. He was hiding from a blind date and stayed with me the whole time… can I say that? No… I can’t keep lying anymore.”
“Stupid country bumpkin!” the assistant laughed. “Because you’re jealous of Sophie, you made up such a poor lie! When Sophie gets officially engaged to the president, you’ll be the first to get fired!”
“Fine,” Mia said, aligning her bucket with deliberate precision. “I’m waiting.”
Sophie lifted her hand, ensuring the heavy platinum band caught the light. “Look at this ring, Mia. Is that the power ring of Kane Group? I never thought we’d get to see the real thing one day!”
“Grandma Kane gave this to me personally,” Sophie lied, her voice dropping into a proud whisper. “The chairman is so good to me… shh, I don’t want too many people to know.”
Mia looked at the platinum band, then down at the plain silver ring on her own finger. “That ring looks really familiar,” she murmured.
“You, a country bumpkin, how could you have ever seen this ring?” Sophie laughed.
“Look… I have one too,” Mia said, lifting her hand.
The secretaries crowded around. “These two rings do look a bit similar… but I remember seeing on TV that the Kane Group’s power ring has a unique engraving—a letter K on the inside.”
Sophie’s face went slightly pale. “Impossible! Mia, you think engraving a K on a cheap ring makes it related to Kane Group? Sophie’s ring was personally given by the chairman. It’s the real power ring. Don’t bring your fake here to crash.”
“If you don’t believe it, let Sophie take it off and have a look,” Mia said, her voice deadly calm. “The real ring has the mark.”
“Sophie, what are you waiting for?” the assistant urged. “Prove to this fake right now who the real fiancée is!”
Sophie reluctantly slipped the platinum band from her finger and turned it over under the desk light. The inside was smooth. Polished. Completely empty.
“There… there’s nothing on it,” Sophie stammered, her voice shaking. “Maybe… I remembered wrong after all. Pictures on TV aren’t always real. And the Kane Group’s power ring has never been publicly displayed!”
“Exactly!” the assistant recovered quickly. “This proves even more that Mia’s ring is fake! The real power ring has no letter on it! And you, not knowing that, made a fake one with a K to pretend to be the president’s fiancée! But Sophie exposed you!”
“Vicious girl!” Sophie shouted, her confidence returning as she pointed a finger at Mia’s face. “If Grandma Kane hadn’t given me this power ring, you might have actually fooled everyone! A janitor dares to claim she knows the chairman… you’re just bullshitting because the chairman never comes to the company! Security! Get her out of here before she ruins the floor!”
Part 7: The True Ring Unleashed
“Welcome, Chairman, for inspecting our work!” a booming voice suddenly echoed from the main elevators. The double doors slid open, and Old Mrs. Kane stepped onto the floor, dressed in a simple wool cardigan, flanked by a dozen security guards and Alexander himself. “Please point out any shortcomings, Madam!” the department head babbled, bowing until his forehead touched his knees.
“Take me to the office area,” the old lady said, her black eyes instantly scanning the desks until they locked onto Mia, who was being held by two assistants near the cleaning cart.
Sophie didn’t notice the chairman’s gaze. She stepped in front of Mia, her voice dripping with artificial sympathy. “Mia, I know you want to compete with me on everything, but you can’t just copy me like this. If you get exposed in front of the chairman, it’s so embarrassing.”
“What exactly am I copying from you, Sophie?” Mia asked, her voice carrying through the quiet office floor.
“I show a ring, you show a ring! I say mine is from the chairman, you say yours is too! If that’s not copying, what is? A few days ago, the chairman had her birthday, and I went to Belmont Manor to visit her. This ring was given to me by Grandma Kane herself!”
“Shut up, Sophie!” the assistant whispered, trying to pull her back.
“Why should I shut up?” Sophie sneered, completely oblivious to Old Mrs. Kane walking up behind her. “A janitor claiming to have been to Belmont Manor? That place is heavily guarded! Sophie, as the president’s fiancée, is the only one qualified. You can even make up a lie like that… what a country bumpkin! The chairman won’t tolerate you staying at Kane Group. Do you know what this ring symbolizes? It represents half the control of the Kane Group! The cost of the real ring is over one hundred million dollars! It isn’t just an ordinary silver ring!”
Mia looked down at her hand, her face completely pale. One hundred million dollars. She had chosen the plain silver band because she thought it was the cheapest prop in the tray, but her analytical eyes had missed the microscopic laser engraving of the Kane dynasty crest on the inner wall. She had taken the most valuable artifact in the family vault.
“I actually chose such a valuable gift…” Mia muttered to herself. “No… this is too precious. I have to return it.”
“Return it?” Sophie laughed triumphantly. “Mia, you just won’t give up until you see the coffin! Still pretending at a time like this? Let’s go, reveal the fake! Omg, Mia, you stink of cleaning soap all over! If Mr. Kane sees you like this, he’ll definitely be angry! Strip her fake ring off her finger right now!”
“Let go of me!” Mia cried as the assistants grabbed her wrists. “When Alexander gets here, you’re dead!”
“You think you’re worthy of saying Mr. Kane’s name?” Sophie raised her hand, ready to strike Mia’s face. “You dare try to seduce the president? I’ll make you lose face in front of the whole company!”
“Keep going,” a low, dark voice sliced through the air like a razor blade. “Who dares touch her? I want to see who dares.”
Alexander stepped into the circle, his face a terrifying mask of absolute, tyrannical fury. The vice presidents behind him went completely rigid. Sophie’s hand froze mid-air, her fake smile returning to her lips in an instant.
“Mr. Kane!” Sophie babbled, dropping to her knees. “Mia has been lying non-stop! She lied that you didn’t attend the banquet last night just to cause trouble! We were just giving her a little lesson… that’s right! We all heard her say it! We are all witnesses!”
“I indeed did not attend the banquet last night,” Alexander said, his voice echoing off the glass walls. He walked over to Mia, his large hands careful as he pulled her clothes straight, his eyes fixing on the plain silver band on her finger. “I was with Mia the whole night last night.”
The office went entirely dead silent. Sophie looked like she had just swallowed a stone. “What… I told you so,” the assistant whispered, backing away toward the elevators. “But you wouldn’t believe me, Sophie! You can’t leave me hanging… these are all things you told me!”
“Don’t talk nonsense!” Sophie screamed, her face turning green. “All of this was just your guess! Mr. Kane, she’s lying!”
Alexander didn’t look at her. He turned to the finance head. “Tell finance to settle her salary immediately. Sophie Collins is terminated and blacklisted from every subsidiary of the Kane Group for the rest of her life. You can leave now.”
“No! I can’t lose my job!” Sophie sobbed, dragging herself across the floorboards toward Alexander’s shoes. “Please, Mr. Kane, spare me this once! My father saved your father’s life!”
“Kane Group values employee character the most,” Alexander said, his voice cold and final. “Clearly, you don’t meet our standards. What about Mia? She forged the power ring symbolizing the president’s fiancée! She kept saying it was given by the chairman… who knows what she was trying to achieve by faking that ring? This is fraud! She should be sent to jail!” Sophie shrieked, pointing a frantic finger at Mia’s silver band.
Old Mrs. Kane stepped forward from the line of guards, her face breaking into a radiant, satisfied smile as she took Mia’s hand in both of hers. “Who says her ring is fake? Give the dirty liar a look… this one is real. And the power ring is my most prized possession. Not even Alex is qualified to have it. I said I’d leave it to my future granddaughter-in-law. Her name is Mia.”
Sophie clutched her head, her breath coming in dry, ragged gasps as she stared at the ancient woman she had spent months trying to mimic. “The… the chairman? You… you are Old Mrs. Kane?”
“You clever girl, Sophie,” the old lady said, her voice dropping into a chilling register. “Mia, don’t be so proud… the days are long, just you wait. Sophie, you’re really blinded by vanity. We’re cousins… if the chairman were really my grandmother, wouldn’t you know? You didn’t even recognize the master when he arrived, or is it that you have been lying all along?”
The guards moved in, lifting Sophie by the arms as she screamed and kicked, dragging her toward the service elevator. The executives cleared the corridor in silence, their faces full of a new, profound terror of the quiet cleaner who had just been revealed as the queen of the tower.
Mia looked down at the silver band, then up at Alexander’s intense, handsome face. “Mrs. Kane… I didn’t know this ring was so valuable,” she whispered. “I’d better give it back to you.”
“There’s no returning gifts once they’ve been given,” Alexander said, sliding his arm around her waist, his fingers locking over the silver metal. “If you feel bad about it… then marry my grandson quickly on the books.”
“We’re already married,” Mia muttered, her cheeks turning pink.
“Then give me my title,” Alexander whispered, his amber eyes filling her entire field of vision. “Are you going to introduce me to your mother today?”
Mia pulled her bucket closer, a small, stubborn smile breaking on her lips. “I’m a little hungry. Let’s go eat first, Alexander. Our university reunion is tomorrow… and I want my ex-boyfriend to see exactly what a tyrannical president looks like when he’s carrying my mop.”
