Novels by Kaleki Grayse

Luna’s hands trembled around the yacht keychain, its silver crescent moon catching the SUV’s dim light. The chaos—gunfire, smoke, Roberts’s laughter, Damien’s screams—still echoed in her mind, a storm refusing to pass. But Grayson’s arm was steady, his heartbeat a calm rhythm against her cheek. They had escaped Building 12, but danger still lingered. Roberts had vanished. Damien’s words—You’ll always be mine—still clung like poison. Grayson brushed her bruised cheek, his touch gentle, his eyes blazing with quiet fury. His suit was rumpled, jaw shadowed with stubble, but his presence felt immovable. “Talk to me, Luna,” he said, low and urgent. “What did she do to you? What did she say?” Luna swallowed. Roberts’s voice still echoed: You’re a pawn. Not a wife. Just a way for Grayson to fix his father’s sins. All her fears—of not being enough, of being a burden—had been weaponized. “She said you love me only to fix your father’s sins,” Luna whispered. “That I’m just leverage. A tool.

Grayson’s SUV screeched to a halt in the Marina District, the rusted silhouette of Building 12 looming against the night sky like a forgotten relic. The text—Come alone, or she dies—burned in his mind. Luna’s bruised face and defiant plea replayed like a relentless nightmare. Trap or not, he’d walk through fire to bring her home.His fingers brushed the concealed Glock at his waist, its cold weight a reminder of the stakes. He wasn’t a soldier, wasn’t trained for this, but for Luna—the woman who’d crashed into his world and stolen his heart—he’d become anything.Marcus’s voice crackled through his earpiece, urgent and low. “Thermal scans show six hostiles inside—armed, spread out across the lower level. You’re walking into a kill zone.”“Stay back,” Grayson said, his voice steady despite the storm raging in his chest. “No one moves without my signal. Understood?”“Grayson,” Marcus replied, his tone pleading, professionalism cracking. “Let us go in first. You’re not trained for this, a

Luna’s cheek throbbed where the masked figure had struck her, the pain sharp but fleeting compared to the deeper ache of seeing Grayson’s rage on the monitor before the feed cut. Her words—Don’t give them anything—had been a desperate plea, but she knew Grayson too well. He’d tear the world apart for her, just like he’d promised under that starlit garden on their first real date.She tugged at the ropes binding her wrists, the coarse fibers biting into her skin. The basement’s damp air was heavy with salt and rust. Somewhere nearby, water lapped gently against docks—a cruel reminder of how far she was from safety… from him.Damien leaned against the wall, his tailored suit and polished shoes a mockery of the monster she’d once escaped. His blue eyes, once deceptively charming, gleamed now with sick, obsessive hunger.“You really think he’s coming, Luna?” he sneered. “Grayson’s got his empire, his billions, his perfect life. You’re just a stray he picked up. A project to make himself f

The war room at Vaughn Industries was a fortress of steel and glass, its sleek walls lined with screens that now mocked Grayson Vaughn with their silence. Luna’s tracking signal—a fragile lifeline to his wife—had vanished forty-seven minutes ago. The warehouse in Long Island City was a dead end.Grayson stood at the head of the conference table, gray eyes burning into the blank central monitor. His hands gripped the polished oak so tightly the wood groaned beneath his fingers. The memory of Luna’s voice—Don’t give them anything—from that chilling call echoed in his mind, her defiance both a comfort and a torment. Every second without her carved a deeper wound, threatening to unravel the iron control he had built over years as a CEO.Sarah, the tech analyst, sat hunched over three laptops, her fingers a blur as she sifted through data streams. Her dark hair was twisted into a messy bun, her eyes bloodshot from sleepless hours. “They made us,” she said tightly. “The authorization codes

Luna's wrists were raw from the zip ties, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the crushing realization of her situation. The warehouse smelled of rust and motor oil, and the single bulb hanging overhead cast harsh shadows across concrete walls.She'd been here for hours, tied to a metal chair in what looked like an abandoned mechanic's shop. Her captors had been surprisingly professional—no unnecessary violence, just efficient restraint and silence. But something about their behavior suggested they were waiting for someone.The sound of footsteps echoed through the warehouse, and Luna's blood turned to ice. She knew that walk—the slightly uneven gait from an old football injury, the way the left foot dragged just slightly."Well, well. Look what we have here."Damien stepped into the light, and Luna's stomach lurched. He looked different from the last time she'd seen him—cleaner, more polished, wearing an expensive suit that didn't quite hide the predatory gleam in his eyes.

The war room at Vaughn Industries had never lived up to its name until tonight. What had once been a sleek conference room was now command central, filled with laptops, monitors, and the quiet intensity of a dozen specialists working against time.Grayson sat at the head of the table, his usual composure replaced by barely controlled urgency. The authorization codes were ready—embedded with enough tracking technology to pinpoint a location within seconds of access. But first, they needed to buy time."Dr. Ashford's flight landed in Geneva four hours ago," Marcus reported, sliding a tablet across the table. "Private jet, paid for in cash. He's disappeared into the banking district.""Smart man," Grayson muttered, his fingers drumming against the mahogany surface. "Gets his granddaughter back and vanishes where extradition is... complicated.""Sir, we could still—""No." Grayson's voice was flat. "He made his choice. Right now, Luna is all that matters."Tessa Morgan, their head of digi

Chapter 142: The Watson mansion was fully alive. Streamers hung cascading off of everything they could, balloons bounced merrily around various corners, and the air swam thick with the tantalizing smell of BBQ on the back porch. Today was, after all, Ave's party – but it was more than that; today was the day Lily and James had chosen to once again pledge themselves to one another.Lily stood before the full-length mirror, straightening out her simple white sundress. At seven months, she was radiant—a perfect arc the curve of her belly was, below the flowing fabric.From the doorway, the sound of a voice declared, "You look beautiful." Lily turned to see her cousin Maggie smile at her."Thanks." Lily smoothed the dress. "I feel like a beached whale, but James insists I'm glowing."Maggie burst out laughing. "He's right, you know. You look like you're about to light up his world or something." She walked over and hugged Lily. "I can't believe how far we've come since that one crazy nig

Chapter 141: Lily woke up off. She couldn't explain it, but something just seemed… off. And when she rolled over to check the time, a wave of nausea hit her. She groaned and buried her face in her pillow."Alright?" James mumbled, still half asleep."Yeah, I just feel a little queasy," Lily replied. "Probably just something I ate."James sat up concerned. "You want me to get you something?"Lily shook her head. "No, I'll be fine. We should get up anyway; Ave has that school play today, remember?"They climbed out of bed and busied themselves getting ready for the day. James went into the bedroom to awaken Ave while Lily projectile-vomited into the toilet.James had, by this time, somehow managed to dress Ave in her costume: a huge, puffy frog outfit in bright green made for the school dress rehearsal of "The Frog Prince.""Mommy!" Ave squealed as she clumped down the stairs. "Do I look like a real frog?"Lily laughed, pushing aside her queasiness. "Why, yes, my child, the fairest fr

Chapter 140: Giggles consumed the room, and James stirred awake. He opened an eye to find a little face at the end of the bed staring in at him."Daddy! Wake up!" little Ave chirped in at him.Stepping over the landmines that were on the bed, James ran his hand through the small amount of her running down her back and picked her up, digging fingers into her tummy."Morning, princess," he said by way of splaying a kiss on her forehead.Ave giggled and squirmed. "Mommy said breakfast was ready!""Oh, yeah?" said James, sitting up but not letting go of the squirming Ave. "Am I to take it that's why Mommy sent you in here to wake me up?"Ave nodded, her bouncing brown curls saying more than she could. "Yep! She said tell you there's coffee."James laughed, and if Lily knew him at all well, it was all for her benefit. "Well then, I guess we'd better not have Mommy waiting, huh?"He climbed out of bed, Ave still in his arms, and rolled out of the room. The smell of bacon and coffee wafted

Chapter 139James lay on his back on the pristine white sand beach and took a pounding from the burning Maldivian sun. His hand reached up behind him for the coconut cocktail, tasting sweetness in his mouth as the gentle lapping of waves broke almost ten meters away from shore. It was the first time he had really been allowed to relax, barring a three-month period, since they had released the secrets of the Shadow Council onto the world."Penny for your thoughts?" The sound of Lily's voice broke through his reverie. She settled herself down on the lounger beside him. Her skin was golden against the sun.He smiled, squeezing her hand, saying, "Just thinking how surreal this all is. A year ago, I was knee-deep in conspiracies and shadow organizations. Now I'm sipping cocktails on a private island."Lily chortled; that sound always hit James in exactly the right place in his heart."Life's funny that way, isn't it?" she said, turning her head to look at him with her chin resting on her a

Chapter 138: James was pacing his living room relentlessly. Elena was with Rachel. It was all over. Well yah, anyway that was supposed to mean.Lilly squinted at him from the couch. "James, honey, you're going to wear a hole in the carpet. Come sit down."He sucked in a deep breath and sat down beside her. "I'm sorry; I just… I just can't help but feel this is too easy. After everything we've been through, this is just too easy."Lily squeezed his hand reassuringly. "James, I hardly think that anything about this has been easy. But maybe, this is the way it ends. Not really with a bang, but with a whimper."There was a pounding on the door. The teenager was on his feet before James could even open his mouth. His heart pounded in his chest. This was it.The door was thrown open. To find Rachel standing there—grimy, dirty, and obviously completely exhausted but still with the fires of determination burning behind her eyes. And past her."Hello, James," came the soft-spoken voice of Ele

Chapter 137: Rachel's hands trembled on the wheel. She drove the car towards the lighthouse. It was a full moon drooping low into a mess, ever drooping across the sky to the west, throwing a queer, sickly light over the whole demesne. She could not believe the fact that she was actually doing this, meeting secretly with her mother, Elena.She couldn't bat the feeling away that this time—this time—things were different. There was no hand in the place that could have been straightened just then, and scarcely a hand for him to take.Beside the lighthouse was her mother's car. Ray closed her eyes, drew a deep breath, and felt her hand shake again, then brought it quickly up to her chest and gripped hard. "You can do this," she whispered to herself.She scrambled out of the car and up the serpentine path to the lighthouse, where waves dashed to the rocks and her feet crunched over gravel.One figure stood at the top by the railing, looking out at the water: Elena. His mother.Rachel's hea