Chapter 1 - THE JANITOR NOBODY NOTICED
The headquarters of Valeron Technologies was the pride of Barcelona.
Its soaring glass walls reflected the morning sun. White marble floors gleamed beneath crystal chandeliers. Executives hurried between meetings while investors from around the world admired the company's breathtaking lobby.
No one noticed the elderly cleaning woman.
Every morning before dawn, sixty-eight-year-old Elena quietly polished the marble until it looked like a mirror.
She had worked there for nearly twelve years.
Nobody knew where she came from.
Nobody asked.
To the executives, she was simply "the cleaning lady."
Elena preferred it that way.
Long sleeves covered her arms.
Bright yellow rubber gloves hid scars she never wanted anyone to see.
Those scars reminded her of the worst day of her life.
Twenty years earlier, a fire had swallowed an orphanage.
She had run through the flames again and again searching for one little boy she loved more than anything.
When firefighters finally dragged her outside, her arms had been burned beyond recognition.
The child had disappeared.
Authorities believed he had died.
Elena never accepted that answer.
She searched for years until poverty forced her to stop.
Every night she whispered the same prayer.
"If you're alive...
...please forgive me for losing you."
Across the city, Ethan Cross stepped out of a black luxury sedan.
At only thirty-six, he had become the new CEO of Valeron Technologies after purchasing a controlling stake in the company.
The media called him a billionaire genius.
Only Ethan knew the truth.
Money had never filled the empty place in his heart.
He had no memories before the age of six.
Only nightmares.
Fire.
Smoke.
May you like
A woman's voice screaming his name.
And two badly burned hands pushing him toward safety.
