Chapter 2 - THE UNFAZED INTERROGATION
Roman stepped forward, his leather soles making no sound against the thick pile of the rug. He reached down with a single, long finger and clicked the power switch mounted on the industrial vacuum's canister.
The whirring motor died instantly, plunging the vast study into an abrupt, echoing silence broken only by the patter of rain against the windowpanes.
Mia spun around in sheer panic. The damp yellow cleaning rag she had been holding in her left hand slipped from her trembling fingers and dropped to the floor with a quiet thud. Her face turned completely pale, her wide brown eyes filled with immediate terror as she realized who was standing before her. She gripped the edges of the faded blue shawl wrapped around her body, protecting her sleeping baby sister.
"Please..." Mia gasped out, her voice barely above a whisper. "Please don't fire my mommy!"
Roman did not raise his voice or show a flicker of anger. Slowly, deliberately, he sank down onto one knee, bringing his towering frame down to eye level with the six-year-old girl. His dark eyes scanned her red, irritated fingers, the dirt on her cream dress, and the heavy burden strapped to her back.
"Where's your mother?" Roman asked softly, his tone low and flat, stripped of his usual hostility.
May you like
Mia’s lower lip trembled, but her throat locked up. She didn't answer him. She pressed her lips together into a tight line, holding her breath as if speaking would validate her worst fears.
Roman waited, watching her closely, expecting the child to break under his gaze. But as the seconds ticked by, he realized something unusual: Mia’s eyes were no longer locked onto his face. She was looking past his shoulder, her wide, terrified gaze fixed entirely on the far side of the room.
