Bayangan Sang Panglima

MARIE

Soft music floated through the air, blending with the low hum of conversation at the Ritz. I swayed slightly to the melody, fingers tracing the stem of my wine glass as I watched James’ expression shift. First confusion, then disbelief.

“I… I don’t understand,” he whispered, his voice unsteady. “Marie, you said you loved me.”

I tilted my head, offering him a small, almost pitying smile. “I lied.”

His blue eyes searched mine like he was hoping—praying—this was all some cruel joke. It wasn’t.

“But I love you,” he choked out, his fingers tightening around his glass. “I wanted to marry you.”

Oh no. Was he going to cry? I hated that. Weakness in men repulsed me. Strength—that was what I enjoyed breaking.

Putting both hands on the table, I leaned in so that I could pin those eyes of his with mine. “James, please, don’t embarrass yourself. Take your loss like a real man, trust me, it’s way better that way.”

“Trust you?” He asked in disbelief. “Trust you!” He thundered, his face crumpling even more. “Look where trusting you has gotten me! You’ve ruined my life. You made me delve up my secrets to you, and then you gave it to my enemy!”

“Yes I did,” I replied coolly. It was important that I let each target know I was done with them after I had gleaned all the information I could for my boss. The last thing I needed was to string along heartbroken men who thought they could have another chance with me.

My work was simple, make targets fall in love with me, glean information from them for my boss, then break their heart in the worst way – okay, the breaking their heart part wasn’t part of my job, but I loved to do it anyway.

I smiled sweetly at the man who sat opposite me. “You still seem a bit confused. I never loved you James, never cared about you. You see, the only reason I was with you was to glean information, and now my work is done, now you’re ruined, I don’t need you again.”

The veil dropped from his eyes, and he finally saw me for who I was. “You’re a snake!” He snarled. “You’re a heartless whore, and a snake!”

I could feel people watching as I walked out, their eyes flicking between me and the heartbroken man sitting frozen at the table. To them, I probably looked like the perfect woman—soft, lovely, untouched by the ugliness of the world. But to James, I was the devil in red lipstick.

And I didn’t mind one bit.

Outside, the city was alive. The crisp night air carried the scent of expensive cigars and freshly poured champagne. I hailed a taxi, slipping inside just as my phone chimed.

“I knew you’d do it,” the deep voice of my boss filtered through the phone to tease my ear.

I was still smiling when I replied. “You shouldn’t have too much faith in me you know – shouldn’t trust me.”

He scoffed. “I don’t trust you Marie, I know you. I created you.”

 He allowed a brief silence to let that sink in before he continued. “Keith’s lawyer called, Marrish enterprises is willing to settle outside court. The information you got from James Sawyer was the blow that buried them. You’ve done well, now come over to my apartment, let’s celebrate.”

I swallowed as the line cut, a familiar feeling tightening my chest.

Garrick Sloane wasn’t just my boss. He was my savior. My inevitable lover—or so he claimed. He was also the only man who had ever truly had power over me.

But he was wrong about one thing. He hadn’t created me.

Five years ago, I was just a heartbroken eighteen-year-old in a wedding dress, sitting on the side of a dusty road, my world shattered. I had caught my fiancé with another woman on the morning of our wedding.

And then Garrick found me.

He offered me a job, a fresh start. At first, I thought I’d be his secretary. But that was just a front for the women he recruited—women like me, trained to seduce and manipulate, to dig up secrets and destroy powerful men.

Garrick was a different kind of businessman. He didn’t reclaim property—he reclaimed control. He used leverage, blackmail, and espionage to get what he wanted, and then, he offered them to his clients who contacted him in the first place to destroy their opponent.

And I was his favorite weapon.

I Let Garrick draw me into his arms the moment I stepped into his pent house apartment.

Low music played at the background, the lights where dimmed into an incandescent glow, his hands felt firm on my hips as he pulled me into the sitting room, swaying in a way that could pass for a dance.

I knew exactly what he was doing. Garrick had made it clear that he wanted me, and that what he wanted, he got.

I let his hands skim up a little more, pressing the small of my back, so that I was even closer to him, before I pulled away.

“I should get a raise for this, James Sawyer was a tough nut to crack.”

He smirked, the corners of his eyes crinkling. “For a moment there, I thought you were asking for a raise because I’d held you in my arms.”

“Oh don’t be ridiculous Garrick,” I fired back. “You know you’ll never be a target to me.”

“And is that such a good thing?” He asked softly, contemplatively. “Would you let me fuck you if I were a target?”

I lowered my lashes, suddenly interested in the pattern of his marble tiles. A beat of silence passed before he spoke again.

“You’ll get a bonus for the Sawyer job,” he said finally. “But before I consider a raise, there’s one more case I need you to handle.”