Every morning for Emma Hayes was initiated all the same: glancing through her inbox, mentally running down her boss's impossibly crazy schedule, and steeling herself for whatever chaos awaited at Arcadia Corp.

The office hummed with its usual rhythm: phones ringing with sharp urgency, heels clicking across the polished floors like some syncopated metronome, and in the background, muffled voices engaged in tense conversations-a constant reminder that the stakes here were always high. Arcadia wasn't just a company; it was a battleground where careers were built or shattered, often in the span of a single quarter.

Emma adjusted her headset, typing up a response to an HR query while balancing two Post-it notes on her monitor. Her boss, the delightfully neurotic Amanda Price, had already barked out three deadlines before 9 a.m.

"Emma!" Amanda's voice cut through the quasi-silence of the office floor like the crack of a whip. Emma winced, half-expecting Amanda to materialize out of thin air. Instead, she turned to her boss, who was standing in her office doorway, looking as exasperated as ever.

"Yes, Amanda?" Emma said, trying to sound accommodating while stifling a sigh.

"I need you to drop everything. Mr. Cross's office is having some sort of… incident." Amanda waved her manicured hand in the air as if to convey the scale of the catastrophe. "He's in a meeting off-site, but he wants those reports on his desk by noon. You know how he is about punctuality."

Emma nodded, though she was already halfway to her feet. She knew all too well how Adrian Cross was about everything-precise, calculated, and-if office gossip was to be believed-unrelentingly ruthless.

Holding a folder, Emma strode briskly to the executive elevator. The top floors of Arcadia, known colloquially as "The Glass Tower," were an entirely different world, reserved for the elite. Emma had only been there a handful of times, and each visit left her feeling like she didn't belong.

The elevator doors opened with a soft ding, revealing Adrian Cross's private suite. It was every bit as intimidating as she remembered: sleek black furniture, floor-to-ceiling windows that offered a panoramic view of the city, and an air of authority that seemed to seep from the walls.

The room felt. too quiet.

Emma hesitated at the threshold, clutching the folder to her chest. The only sound was the faint hum of the air conditioning. She came in cautiously, scanning the immaculate desk for any signs of what Amanda had called an "incident." There were no overturned papers, no misplaced pens. Everything was just so-so perfect.

She set the folder down, about to turn and make a quick retreat, when something caught her eye.

A slip of paper, tucked just beneath a leather-bound journal on the edge of the desk.

Emma wasn't a snoop by nature, but the placement seemed odd. Almost deliberate. She reached out hesitantly, her fingers brushing the edge of the paper as she pulled it free.

Three words, scrawled in bold, uneven handwriting:

Trust no one.

Emma blinked her heartbeat quickening.

"What in the world…" she muttered under her breath.

The handwriting wasn't neat or precise, nothing like Adrian Cross's signature, which she had seen on countless documents. This was rushed, almost frantic. The ink was slightly smudged, as if it had been written in haste.

Her mind raced through possibilities: a prank, a warning, or something worse?

She barely had time to process the note when a voice startled her.

"Can I help you?"

Emma spun around, the note falling from her fingers. Standing in the doorway was a man she didn't know. The well-tailored suit and honed features screamed "executive," but his narrowed eyes and the way he lingered just inside the door set her on edge.

"I was just. dropping off some reports for Mr. Cross," she said, trying to keep her voice steady.

The man's gaze flicked to the desk, then back to her. "You're not authorized to be in here alone."

Emma bristled. "I was sent by Amanda Price. If there's an issue, you're welcome to take it up with her."

He didn't reply immediately, instead stepping further into the room. His movements were slow, deliberate, as if he were sizing her up.

"Just make sure you don't touch anything," he said finally, his tone clipped.

Emma nodded, already inching toward the door. The note lay forgotten on the floor, but she didn't dare pick it up now.

Back at her desk, Emma's thoughts were a jumble. The note's cryptic message gnawed at her. Trust no one. What did it mean? Was it connected to Arcadia's growing rumors of sabotage?

The first thing that flashed into her mind was Lucy Carter's face. Her best friend-and former colleague-had been laid off two weeks earlier under what Lucy had called "sketchy circumstances." Arcadia's official statement had been vague, blaming "restructuring," but Lucy had hinted at something deeper.

"This place has secrets, Emma," she'd said during their last coffee date. "Big ones. Be careful."

Emma shook her head, trying to focus on her work. Whatever that note meant, it wasn't her problem. Her job was to survive Amanda's whims, not get caught up in corporate intrigue.

But as the day wore on, she found herself glancing over her shoulder more often than usual.

That evening, Emma met Lucy at their favorite coffee shop.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," Lucy said as Emma slid into the booth.

Emma hesitated, debating whether to bring up the note. Lucy had always been good at sniffing out trouble—and diving headfirst into it.

"I found something weird at work," Emma began, keeping her voice low.

Lucy leaned in, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. "Weird how?"

Emma described the note, careful not to mention the strange man in Adrian's office.

Lucy's face clouded over. "That is not weird. That is a red flag, Emma. Someone's trying to send a message."

"Maybe it is nothing," Emma said, although it sounded even in her own ears like a hasty lie.

Lucy shook her head. "At Arcadia, there is no such thing as 'nothing.' You need to be careful. If someone finds out you saw that note." The unfinished warning hung in the silence.

Emma's stomach churned. She hadn't thought of that. "What do you think it means?"

Lucy shrugged. "Could be anything. Corporate sabotage, insider trading, you name it. But if I were you, I'd watch my back."

Emma barely slept that night. The note lingered in her mind, its three words looping endlessly.

She showed up early to work the next morning, hoping the uneasiness would wear off. As she stepped off the elevator, though, something caught her eye.

Adrian Cross was there.

The CEO rarely appeared on the lower floors unless something was seriously wrong. It was like a lightning strike-the employees scurried to look busy.

Emma ducked into her cubicle, trying to stay out of his line of sight. But it was just not her day for good fortune.

"Ms. Hayes," Adrian said, his deep voice cutting through the office noise.

Emma froze, then turned slowly. "Yes, Mr. Cross?"

"Come with me," he said simply.

Her pulse quickened as she followed him to a private conference room. Once inside, Adrian closed the door and gestured for her to sit.

"I understand you were in my office yesterday," he began, his expression unreadable.

Emma's heart sank.

"I… I was delivering reports," she stammered. "Amanda sent me."

Adrian nodded, but his piercing gaze didn't waver. "Did you see anything unusual?"

The question caught her off guard. Did he know about the note? Or was this about something else?

Emma hesitated. Lying to Adrian Cross seemed like a terrible idea, but admitting she'd found the note felt equally risky.

"No," she said finally, keeping her tone neutral.

For a moment, Adrian studied her, his sharp blue eyes boring into hers. Then, to her surprise, he leaned back a little, the tension in his posture easing.

"If you do see anything… unusual, I expect you to report it directly to me," he said.

Emma nodded, although her mind was racing. Why was he telling her this? Did he suspect her of something?

"Trust is a rare commodity in this company, Ms. Hayes," Adrian concluded, his voice softer yet just as serious. "Do not squander it."

As Emma went back to her desk, thoughts swirled through her mind. The note, Adrian's warning so cloaked, Lucy's suspicions-everything fell into place.

And for the first time, Emma felt herself in over her head.