LOGINThe van rolled up behind us the second we stepped out of the car as the doors slammed against the pavement and our boots landed hard on the concrete as I grabbed Mira by the arm and pulled her behind a dumpster before the first shot even fired."Get down!" I said as we dropped to the ground and the bullets tore into the metal above our heads loudly and close. My ears rang from the noise and my hands shook, but I kept them steady around my gun"This was a setup," Mira said, breathing hard beside me."You think?" I fired back at the nearest shadow moving toward us through the smoke and he dropped instantly as Mira fired next to me,with two shots and another man went down between the cars. We moved together without a word, crouching low and weaving between the vehicles, using the chaos around us to gain distance as we continued."There's an alley," she said, pointing past the corner. "They are fifty feet away from us.""Go."We ran through the dark as shots cracked behind us, hitting
Pov: NicholeI lay awake in the pitch-dark bedroom with my eyes wide open. Xavier was curled in front of me, his warm back pressed flush against my chest under the thin wool blanket. Neither of us had slept a wink since the sun went down.Through the silence, the clock on the far wall made a soft, rhythmic ticking sound that filled the cold space between us. It was nearly two in the morning when Xavier finally turned his head toward the wall and spoke into the shadows."My whole name is a lie," he said, his voice barely rising above a whisper.I pulled him closer, wrapping my arm tightly around his ribs. "Your name is still yours, Xavier.""No, it isn't," he muttered, shaking his head against the pillow. "Everything I thought I knew about my father is gone. The papers inside were all fake and my birth record was fabricated, and I don't even know who actually bought my first crib under that roof.""You are still the exact same person," I said, leaning over him. "I watched you during
The ConfrontationXavier didn't call ahead. He just drove straight to his mother's house, with the ledger that clutched in his hand like it might disappear if he loosened his grip. I went with him and obviously, I wasn't going to let him walk into that alone.She opened the door in her silk robe, with a perfect hair even at this hour, and smiled like nothing was wrong."Xavier, sweetheart, what a surprise."Then Xavier , ignored all her glances and held up the ledger. "Explain this."Her smile didn't move, but her eyes did with just a flicker. "Explain what?""Mother, don't give me that shit." His voice was low and shaking. "Don't stand there and pretend like you don't know about this."She stepped back and let us in, her hands folding tight in front of her. When we came in, the living room felt too clean and perfect, like a stage set for a life that wasn't real."Sit down," she said as she offered a hand to the direction of the seat. "I don't want to sit." Xavier snapped."Xavier
Pov: NicholeXavier called me before I even had my coat off."Nichole, you need to sit down." He said."I'm sitting." I replied, taking one left corner of the dining as he sat down together with me and started the conversation."The name from the ledger, the one the enforcer gave us before he died. I need it to come to your notice that we ran it against Thorne's list.""And?""It's Senator Callahan."I actually laughed, not because it was funny, but because it was too much. "The guy who does the ribbon cuttings? The one with the foundation for foster kids?”"That's the one.""That's insane, Xavier.""I know." He responded,as his voice cracked a little. "Thorne went quiet on the phone for a full minute and I've never heard him go quiet like that."I could hear Xavier's shallow breathing, like he'd been running."They put a man like that in plain sight," he said. "And he is someone everyone loves, who no one would ever suspect.""That's the whole point," I replied as Xavier didn't answe
The gunfire came out of nowhere and in less than one second, Mira and I were circling each other, fists up, and ready to finish what we started. In less than the next second, the wall behind her exploded into dust and splinters, as I hit Mira with my arms."Get down!" I yelled.Mira didn't need to be told twice as she dropped next to me, breathing hard, with blood on her lip from where I'd hit her.Another round of shots tore through the room as I grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the side door but she didn't fight me and that surprised me more than the gunfire did."This doesn't mean I trust you," she said, crawling beside me."Same here" I said. "But I trust them less."We made it out through a service hallway, both of us were shaking and alive only because the other one hadn't hesitated. I looked at her once we were clear, with our chests heaving and backs against a cold brick wall."You could've left me in there," she said."So could you."Neither of us had an answer for why
POV: XavierThe engine of our black sedan purred in the dark. I gripped the cold leather of the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turned white and my fingers felt numb. Outside the windshield, the rain fell in heavy, gray sheets, washing over the cracked pavement of the abandoned shipping yard. The world outside looked blurred, messy, and cold and beside me, Nichole reached over and rested her hand on top of mine. Her fingers were warm and they were the only warm thing left in my entire life right now."He is going to do it, Xavier," she whispered with her voice trembling, but her eyes were steady. "Raymond wants to live too much to back out now and he will lead Thorne's men straight to them.""I know," I said, turning my head to look at her. I could see the dark circles under her eyes, and the exhaustion lines around her mouth. We had not slept in days. "But Raymond does not know he is just a bait and Thorne is using him like a piece of meat to draw out my uncle Marcus's extrac
(Nichole's Pov)I woke up with a gasp, disoriented and aching. My head still throbbed hard as I found out I was lying on the floor, this time, on a cold pavement, in front of my house. I still noticed my body was still in blood stains.Where am I? I was confused.I wobbled to my feet. Looking arou
“Nichole! The test confirms you are 3weeks pregnant!”“What? Pregnant?”I had a flutter immediately in my stomach, not the baby, but the excitement when I heard the news.My trembling hands caressed my belly, joy swelling in my heart.The test results were real!I will soon be a mother.I am pregnan
POV :Beatrice.Knock! knock!I heard a knock on the door.She didn't look like a woman who had just seen a tragedy. Her coat was buttoned, and her face was a mask of cold indifference. She looked at me with eyes that were far too calm for the news she was carrying."Mrs. Beatrice," she said flatly,
‘Ma please you can't go in” The secretary dragged.Raymond didn’t look up when the office door swung open. He remained busy at his annoying files that have kept him rigid since morning, his expression clearly looks pissed off by network issues from his system.He was still necked deep into his work







