Chapter 392: It’s a Ride

Lucas sat still after the numbers faded.

Negative five.

He ran the last few lines back in his head. He had not raised his voice. He had not joked. He had not asked for anything. All he said was that he could try to help.

So why did it land like that?

Did she think he was showing off? A rich man throwing money at a problem he did not understand?

He looked at Lyra again. Her face had closed. Not dramatic. Just shut. The folder in her lap might as well have been a wall.

What Lucas did not know was that she had heard this kind of offer before.

Back when Paul still worked under TikTok Live, Durnik had worn the same soft mask. He showed up at the hospital with concern that lasted a little too long. He asked how she was sleeping. He asked if the doctors were doing enough. He paid bills Paul had not asked him to touch. Every kindness came with a quiet weight behind it.

While Paul was buried in work, Durnik sat by Lyra’s bed and tried to turn gratitude into something else. He wanted her weak enough to lean on him. He wanted the sister of a useful man under his hand.

So when Lucas looked at her in that office and said he could help, the old shape snapped into place at once.

Boss.

Smile.

Sudden kindness.

A stare that had lasted one second too long when he first walked through the door.

To Lyra, it was the same script with a different face.

Paul saw it on her before she said a word. He had lived with that closed expression long enough to read it in a single glance. Whatever Lucas thought he was offering, his sister had already placed him beside the last man who wrapped pressure in care and called it help.

Paul turned to him, polite and firm.

"President Lucas, please don’t worry about it. We’ll handle our own problems. There’s no need to trouble you."

Lucas frowned.

"I’m not trying to trouble anyone. I only said I could help."

Paul nodded once, the kind of nod that closes a door without slamming it.

"I understand. But this is a family matter. You’ve already done more than enough for the company."

Lucas looked from Paul to Lyra. Neither of them seemed to hear what he thought he had said.

Paul cleared his throat and changed the subject.

"Did you come to review company performance? I can walk you through everything since the attacks started."

Lucas held Lyra’s profile one second longer, then let it go. Pushing now would only make it worse.

"Yes. Start from when Durnik moved against us."

Paul looked relieved to be back on solid ground. He pulled a stack of reports closer and began.

Lucas took the chair near Lyra’s side of the room. Not close enough to crowd her. She opened her laptop and did not look at him. Her fingers moved across the keys like the health conversation had never happened.

Paul talked.

Numbers first. Download curves. Retention drops. The hours after Gracie’s stream when users left in chunks big enough to scare any investor. Then the recovery work. Marketing spend. Creator outreach. The slow climb back that still was not fast enough.

Lucas listened, asked short questions, and kept his eyes on the papers.

"There’s more," Paul said after a while. He opened another folder. "Durnik didn’t only hit us from the outside. He tried to put people inside."

"How?"

"Job applicants. Clean resumes. Good interviews. We almost hired two before security caught inconsistencies. Plants. Looking for access and internal data."

"And after that?"

"Employment policy got stricter overnight. Background checks. Longer probation. No one new gets near core systems without layers of approval." Paul tapped the page. "It slowed hiring, but it stopped that route."

The talk stretched.

One report became three. Three became a stack. Afternoon light shifted across the building opposite them. Inside, the air stayed cool.

Lyra barely spoke. She worked on her laptop, checked a document when Paul passed one over, then went back to her screen. When she looked up, it was never at Lucas for long.

Two hours passed before anyone noticed the time.

Lyra closed the laptop with a soft click.

"Paul."

Both men turned.

She checked her phone, then looked at her brother.

"It’s time. I need to go back to the hospital."

Paul stood at once, already reaching for his jacket.

"President Lucas, I’m sorry. I didn’t track the time. If you need the rest of these files—"

Lucas shook his head.

"Go."

Paul hesitated.

"Really," Lucas said. "Handle that first."

He stood as well.

"I’ll walk with you."

Paul looked like he wanted to refuse. Lucas did not give him room.

They left the office together. The hallway was quieter than the lobby had been that morning. Elevator doors opened. Inside, Lyra stood near the wall, one hand on the rail. She looked paler than she had two hours earlier. The control was still there, but the fatigue sat under it now.

When they reached the ground floor, Lucas spoke again.

"I’ll drive you."

Paul stopped.

"President Lucas, that’s not necessary. You’ve already given the company more support than we had any right to expect. I don’t want to turn a work visit into a personal favor."

"It’s a ride," Lucas said. "Not a contract."

Paul still looked ready to decline. Habit made him resist putting private problems on his boss’s schedule. Lyra opened her mouth as if to back him, then closed it. Up close, the tiredness was clearer. She had used up what energy she brought for the day. She had nothing left for a polite fight in a parking lot.

Lucas did not argue further. He just walked toward the private lot.

After a short pause, Paul followed. Lyra came with him.

Outside, the air was warmer. Lucas unlocked the BMW. Paul helped Lyra into the back seat with the careful movements of a man who had done it many times. He took the front passenger seat after a brief hesitation, still looking like he might change his mind and call a cab.

Lucas started the engine.