Se connecter“Answer what he asked,” One of the burly men pressed against his shoulders.His body shook at the burly man’s touch, and he crawled to my side, “I am sorry. I shouldn’t have done that. I just wanted to scare them.”I didn’t interrupt as he cried.“I just… I just wanted them to scare them. I didn’t know those people would escalate that much,” He continued.“You didn’t know?” My brows raised.He shook his head, “I didn’t… I am telling the truth. If I knew… If I knew, I wouldn’t have done this.”“Do you realise how many people died that night?” I asked a moment later.He lowered his face for a moment as he answered, “I am sorry.”“What does your sorry do now?” I roared. For one second, I could believe he was innocent. Apparently, he was, from the way he was behaving right now. It didn’t look like he was lying. Either there was a bigger play behind the scenes, or he was a good actor. But it didn’t matter anymore. What was done had already been done. Nothing could be reversed now.He didn’
The night was heavy. When we finally left the cruise, it was already morning. By the time we reached a safe place, I had lost too much blood. The last memory before closing my eyes was seeing Drake for two seconds. His figure was blurry, but I knew he was there.When I regained consciousness, twenty-eight hours had passed. The smell of antiseptic filled my senses as I slowly opened my eyes. White walls. Plenty of machines were surrounding my body. I glanced out of the window and blinked a few times to clear my vision.A few minutes passed before I noticed two nurses entering my room. They took the reading first without saying a word or change of expression, seeing I was awake. After they were done, they walked out.A moment later, one of the nurses entered the room again, and this time she had an elderly-looking doctor by her side. I didn’t hear what she said clearly, but the doctor frowned deeper.He slowly nodded at her and walked to my side, “How are you feeling now?”“It’s alright
The thought barely processed in my mind when I heard another round of bullets roaring in the air. I didn’t let myself hesitate and slowly bent down to grab the fallen gun. Then, immediately, I rolled behind a steel pillar for my cover to protect myself as the bullet passed the spot where I had been standing a second ago. The air was thick with the smoke of gunfire. The force of impact vibrated through the pillar and then into my shoulder. “They are tightening the circle,” I muttered under my breath.I peeked out slightly to track their movements. Next, I noticed two men on the upper deck. One of them was standing closer to the stairs. The other one was covering him from the open side.There were snipers above and shooters below. It was a perfect kill box.My jaw tightened slightly. It was not bad, but it was not enough. I moved as my chance came. I fired twice in a quick move. I missed the first shot intentionally, which forced the man near the stairs to shift from his position. The
I didn’t respond immediately. I let his words sit between us. It was as if he was offering me something, like this wasn’t anything but a test again.“When?” I asked calmly.“Tonight,” He replied calmly.That fast? Considering the time durations he had given me tasks, it was quicker this time. I didn’t mind it and asked with a sharp gaze, “Where?”“It’s a high level meeting on a private cruise. They are all powerful people, and it includes bigger money but also bigger risks.”“And bigger betrayal,” I added.He smiled faintly as he nodded, “Now you are thinking correctly.”I leaned forward slightly, resting my elbows on knees, “What’s the catch here?”“There is always a catch,” He began in a smooth tone, “The deal is unstable. Those people don’t fully trust each other. One wrong move could lead to bigger chaos.”“And you still want the deal to get done through me?” I asked.“I would like to see you survive it,” He corrected.He would like to see me survive it. His tone said he had the c
He was standing near the same balcony where we met for the first time that day. His back was facing the hall, and the way the city lights reflected on his body, it made him look even more still and controlled. It was like he hadn’t moved from his position at all.“You’re late,” He said without turning to look at me.“It’s done,” I replied calmly.Then slowly, he turned his body to face me. His gaze scanned over my body, checking for any sign of struggle or so, but there was no visible expression on my face.“That was not a simple task,” He murmured under his breath.“It was never supposed to be,” I correctly answered.For a moment, heavy silence lingered between us. Then he slowly nodded, “Good.”Good! That one word carried more meaning than praise. It meant I passed enough to enter his inner world. It meant I didn’t fail his expectation. It was enough for now. He walked past me and stopped just close enough for his voice to be barely audible to me, “Do you know why I chose you?” He a
Lucien Drake. He was one of the men I initially started doing business deals with. He stood by my side when I was dealing with my enemies from Italy. Seeing his name was nothing but a shock to me. But again, in our world, deals were made on the basis of profit. Regardless of the information Max found, I had to dig deeper into this matter. Tomorrow, we will be back in Vegas. I would let Eliot look into Drake first. If he found nothing, it would be good. But if he did, Drake would face his worst karma.I leaned back in my chair, thinking about everything happened lately. I wasn’t sure of the power backing Nolan. For now, that he was gone was enough for me. I closed my eyes for a moment. The memory of Drake from many years ago came to my mind like a dark shadow. That time, I wasn’t who I am today. Back then, my name held no weight. People didn’t lower their voice when I walked into a room. They didn’t watch me with caution. They didn’t think twice before underestimating me. And that
It took me a moment to grasp what he was asking about, “Uh, why are you asking this?”“Tell first,” He emphasised.I frowned. That was the sudden and out-of-nowhere question. What did it have to do with him to know who had access to my office? I looked at his face for a second. He looked serious, n
“Sir, I found something,” Eliot’s voice came through the other end.“What’s it?” I asked.“There is a problem arising on the north shore. Someone from local gangs is messing with Madam’s territories,” Eliot said in one breath.“Eliminate them,” Taking a moment, I ordered.“Sir. They are receiving s
The moment we stepped outside, the cold air hit my skin. It was a sharp contrast against the suffocating tension inside the building. The parking area was barely it. Something felt wrong to me. I didn’t stop to think about it, and I quickly walked towards my car and pulled open the back door. My ha
Valerie Thorne’s POV:“Who else?” he said with a rare soft smile.“But…” I tried to make sense of what he had said. That night, it was Raven? How could it be? He sat in front of me, sounding so true. But no matter how much I tried to remember what happened that night, who it was, I couldn’t remembe







