Chapter 46: Anastasia

At 8:30 AM on Monday morning, I follow Eleanor Albright’s assistant down the carpeted corridor, my heels clicking softly against the the floorboards. The assistant keeps her eyes fixed straight ahead, her fingers gripping a manila folder against her pencil skirt. When we reach the doors of the main boardroom, she opens one side, steps back, and signals for me to enter.

"Director Albright is expecting you, Miss Anastasia," she says quietly.

I step into the room. Eleanor Albright sits at the head of the table, her silver hair styled into a tight, flawless twist, a gold fountain pen resting between her fingers.

To her right sits...