The air in the Solis Tech executive suite was thick enough to choke on. Ethan stood by the floor to ceiling windows, watching the Manila traffic crawl like ants below. He didn't turn around when the door opened. He didn't need to. The sudden spike in the room’s "static" told him exactly who had arrived.
"You can’t transfer her to the Palawan branch, Ethan," Jasper said, dropping a thick manila folder onto the desk. "Aside from the fact that she’s an intern and doesn't even have a travel budget, it looks suspicious."
"She’s a liability," Ethan replied, his voice a low vibration. He kept his gloved hands clasied behind his back. "Yesterday, in the elevator... the curse didn't just manifest, Jasper. It was countered. She touched me, and the feedback loop died."
Jasper whistled, leaning against the mahogany desk. "A Grounder. My mom used to tell stories about people like that. Spirits so heavy and 'earth-bound' that magic just slides right off them. You should be marrying her, not deporting her."
Ethan turned, his eyes flashing with a cold, violet intensity. "I am a danger to her. The more the curse is suppressed, the harder it hits when the dam breaks. I won't have her blood on my hands because she’s too 'grounded' to know better."
"Too late," Jasper muttered, checking his watch. "The Vane Group meeting is in ten minutes. And since you fired your previous assistant for 'breathing too loudly,' HR assigned you a temporary replacement for the presentation."
Ethan’s jaw tightened. "No."
"Yes," Jasper grinned. "And look who’s already outside with the tablets."
Through the frosted glass partition, Mika Dela Cruz was visible, struggling with a stack of digital tablets and a laser pointer. She was wearing a slightly more professional blazer today, but she still had a bright yellow pen tucked behind her ear like a defiant flag.
The boardroom was a theater of power. On one side sat Ethan, Jasper, and a somber Damien Cortez. On the other sat the representatives of the Vane Group, led by a man who looked like he had been carved out of polished marble: Adrian Cruz.
Adrian was the CEO of Cruz International, Ethan’s primary rival. He was charming, wealthy, and—unlike Ethan—completely comfortable in a crowd.
"Ethan," Adrian purred, leaning back in his chair. "You look tense. Is it the coffee? Or is it the rumors that Solis Tech is literally falling apart at the seams?"
"The rumors are as hollow as your last quarterly report, Adrian," Ethan snapped.
Mika moved around the table, handing out the tablets. When she reached Ethan, she paused. The air between them hummed. She leaned in, her voice a stage whisper that carried across the silent room. "Your tie is crooked, Mr. Vampire. Want me to fix it?"
The room went dead silent. Damien looked like he was about to have a stroke. Adrian’s eyebrows shot up in amusement.
"Sit. Down. Miss Dela Cruz," Ethan hissed, his fingers gripping the underside of the table so hard the wood began to groan.
The presentation began, but the atmosphere was volatile. Adrian wasn't there to negotiate; he was there to provoke. He kept leaning forward, his presence encroaching on Ethan’s personal space.
"The Vane Group needs stability," Adrian said, his eyes locking onto Ethan’s. "They need a leader who can shake a hand without looking like they’re about to catch a plague. Tell me, Ethan, why would they choose a ghost over a man who actually lives in the real world?"
The "Solis Hum" began to escalate. The lights overhead started to buzz with a sickening, high-pitched whine. Ethan felt the pressure building in his chest—the curse reacting to Adrian’s malice. A glass pitcher of water in the center of the table began to vibrate, ripples forming in the center.
"Mr. Solis is just... very focused on the data," Mika interrupted suddenly, stepping between Ethan and Adrian. She dropped a tablet onto the table with a loud clack, breaking the line of sight between the two men.
"And who are you?" Adrian asked, his eyes raking over Mika with a predatory curiosity.
"The person who’s going to show you why his data is better than your monologue," Mika said brightly. She accidentally—or perhaps purposefully—brushed her shoulder against Ethan’s arm as she reached for the HDMI cable.
The effect was instantaneous. The buzzing lights steadied. The vibrating water pitcher stilled. The dark, heavy pressure in Ethan’s lungs vanished, replaced by a cool, clean sensation.
Ethan looked at her. She was smiling at Adrian, her expression a mask of professional cheekiness, but her hand stayed anchored firmly on the table right next to Ethan’s.
"As you can see on slide four," Mika continued, completely unfazed by the fact that she was currently holding back a supernatural disaster.
The meeting ended in a stalemate, but as Adrian stood to leave, he lingered by the door. He looked at Mika, then at Ethan. A slow, dangerous smile spread across his face.
"You’ve found a very interesting shield, Ethan," Adrian said softly. "I wonder... what happens to the shield when the sword hits it hard enough?"
He left, the threat hanging in the air like smoke.
Once the room was empty of everyone but Ethan and Mika, the silence felt heavy. Mika began stacking the tablets.
"You should have let the lightbulbs pop," Ethan said, his voice raw.
"And ruin my best blazer with glass shards?" Mika shook her head, finally looking at him. "You’re welcome, by the way."
"I told you to stay away, Mika. He saw you. Adrian Cruz doesn't play by the rules. If he thinks you’re my weakness—"
"I’m not a weakness," Mika countered, stepping closer, defying the six-foot rule once again. The golden light Ethan had seen in the elevator seemed to shimmer around her skin. "I’m the only person in this building who isn't afraid to look you in the eye. Maybe that’s exactly what you need."
She turned and walked out, leaving Ethan alone in the boardroom. He looked down at the mahogany table. Where her hand had been resting, there was a faint, warm smudge on the wood a lingering mark of a world he wasn't allowed to touch.