LOGINReaperI spent the next twenty-four hours tearing the underworld apart looking for that fucking anchor.I took photos of the bloody silk pocket square and sent them to every single contact I had. I woke up the head of the Irish mob in Chicago. I dragged our best hackers out of bed and ordered them to scrub every dark web database, every corporate registry, and every Interpol watchlist for a serpent wrapping around a golden anchor.I even swallowed my pride and went to the Russian Bratva. I sat at a table with men who would normally put a bullet in my back, slid the photo across the wood, and offered a million dollars to anyone who could give me a name.Nothing.Every single screen came back blank. Every old-timer I threatened swore they had never seen it. The crest didn't exist in any police file, any cartel ledger, or any military database.Whoever was behind this, he operated so far above the streets that my entire criminal empire looked like a sandbox to him.By the time the sun s
MilaI followed the maid up the sweeping marble staircase. The maid opened a set of double doors, leading me through my bedroom and toward another arched doorway.When I stepped inside, my breath hitched all over again.It wasn't just a bathroom. It looked like a private sanctuary built strictly for a queen. The floors and walls were made of white marble laced with veins of gold. A massive crystal chandelier hung above a sunken, circular bathtub that was big enough for four people. The tub was already filled to the brim with warm, steaming water and the surface was covered in white bubbles and floating white peony petals.The room smelled of expensive scent of jasmine and vanilla.But more weirdly, there were two other women who were standing quietly beside the tub.They were wearing the exact same black-and-white uniforms. One was holding a stack of white towels, and the other was holding a silver tray filled with crystal bottles of bath oils and sponges.I took a step back, my hear
MilaWelcome home, mi perdición. Rest now. I will be with you for dinner.I stared at the paper until the elegant black cursive began to blur into meaningless shapes. My thumb traced the sharp edge of the wax seal.Mi perdición.I whispered the words aloud to the empty room. The syllables rolled off my tongue. I didn't speak Spanish. I knew a few basic conversational words from living in the city but not this. Mi meant my. That's all I knew.I needed to know what it meant. If I was going to sit across a dinner table from the phantom who had orchestrated my kidnapping, I needed to understand exactly how he viewed me.I carefully folded the note and slipped it into my pocket. My fingers brushed against the kitchen knife I had hidden there earlier. I pushed myself off the velvet sofa and walked back out into the grand hallway. "Hello?" I called out.A few doors down, near the sweeping staircase, the young maid in the spotless black-and-white uniform stepped out of a side room. She kept
MilaI refused to accept the reality.I pushed myself off the grass and started to run along the boundary of the white wall. My breath came in fast gasps. My hand cradled my lower stomach to support the slight bump of my pregnancy as I forced my burning legs to carry me further.There had to be a break. A crack. A service gate. Something.I followed the curving stone barrier for what felt like miles. The sun beat down on my shoulders, making me sweat in the wrinkled clothes I had been wearing since the night of the attack. The yard was an endless maze of perfectly sculpted fences, marble fountains, and ancient palm trees but the wall never once broke its imposing height.Finally, through a line of thick cypress trees, I saw a massive set of solid iron gates."Hey!" I screamed as I immediately sprinted toward the driveway.Standing in front of the iron bars were four men.I slowed my pace as I approached them. My chest was heaving fast. But spotting them, the last hope in me died.T
ReaperThe hiss of the ventilator had finally stopped.From the corner of the underground med-bay, I watched Doc quietly adjust an IV drip, but my eyes were locked entirely on the face of my Vice President.Justin’s eyelids fluttered. After thirty-two agonizing days, they finally cracked open.His dark eyes were unfocused, and heavily drugged, but the second they found me standing in the corner, he hurried to speak. "Reaper." he croaked. I crossed the room in two long strides, gripping the railing of his hospital bed. "I am here, Havoc. I am right here. Don't try to move."Justin swallowed hard. "Did you... did you find her?"The question felt like a sharp blade twisting directly into my gut.I looked down at my knuckles, still split and bruised from a month of fruitless, violent interrogations."No." I answered. "We tore the southside apart, Havoc. The Skulls are hiding in the walls. We have nothing."Justin closed his eyes and a tear of pure frustration leaked into his hairline. H
MilaWhen I finally opened my eyes again, the suffocating darkness was gone this time.The blindfold had been removed. The metal handcuffs that had bitten into my wrists were nowhere to be found. And the freezing air conditioner had been replaced by a soft, warm breeze.I gasped, shooting up from the mattress. Panic instantly gripped my chest as my hands flew to my stomach, checking on my baby. I was still pregnant. I was still alive.But I was no longer floating in that darkness.I looked around and my eyes immediately widened in absolute shock.I was sitting in the middle of a circular bed. The sheets were made of the softest white silk I had ever felt. Above me, a sparkling crystal chandelier hung from a high, beautifully crafted ceiling.The room looked like it belonged inside a royal palace. There were velvet curtains, pure gold handles on the doors, and expensive rugs covering the floors. The sunlight was pouring in through huge windows, completely blinding me for a second."Go
ReaperThe screen flashed with a text.Mila: Fuck you.Me: You wish.I leaned back, resting the phone on my chest. I should stop. I should maintain professional distance. But the memory of her taste was still on my tongue, and the anger at her leaving was still a fresh wound.Me: Tell me what you’
MilaFrom the gate, it took me exactly thirty seconds to walk to the house. I knew this because I used to count those seconds, a trick to calm myself from panic attacks.One. Two. Three. Each second was a tiny anchor.Caleb stood beside me. He seemed to be a little nervous even though he tried to
Reaper “I am going back to him.” Mila had announced.As soon as her words crashed into the room, sverything seemed to freeze. Then Justin blew up, “No way in hell you are!” He swiped his arm across a table, sending a bottle of Jack and a couple of glasses flying. They smashed on the floor, glass
ReaperThe basement stairs were steep, skinny, and had a musty, rotten smell. With every step down, the thumping bass of the music upstairs faded, replaced by the hum of the generator and the dripping of a leaky pipe. Justin was panting behind me, his fury burning hot. He was craving some blood. H







