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FORTY-FIVE: The Hidden Ledger
Tanggal publikasi:
2026-08-03 07:22:54
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THE BILLIONAIRE'S STAND-IN BRIDE EIGHTY
Aria’s POV The study looked different by mid-afternoon than it had at dawn, every surface covered now in neat, organized stacks of documents, Dmitri’s meticulous system already imposing order on everything we’d carried back from the Gathering House. Romeo sat hunched over his laptop near the window, cross-referencing financial records against the contact list while Elena reviewed photographs of the founders on the main screen, her expression unreadable. I lingered near the doorway a moment before joining them, still steadying myself from the terrace, the quiet of it already feeling impossibly far away against everything spread out across the desk now. “We’ve confirmed twelve names on that list,” Dmitri said, without looking up from his notes. “Eight appear to still be active. Three are marked with the symbol we saw repeated near several crossed-out entries, which I now believe indicates deceased. One remains unaccounted for entirely.” “The unidentified name,” Romanov said. “The o
THE BILLIONAIRE'S STAND-IN BRIDE SEVENTY-NINE
Aria’s POV We didn’t speak much on the drive back to the estate, the documents secured in a locked case wedged between Dmitri’s feet, my thoughts still circling the same signature over and over, unable to settle anywhere else. Romanov drove with one hand resting occasionally over mine on the console between us, not saying anything, simply staying present in the only way either of us seemed to have energy left for. I watched the fields blur past the window, unable to hold onto any single thought long enough to make sense of it, my mind returning again and again to the same worn photograph, the same careful signature, the same quiet, ordinary memories now permanently tangled up with everything we’d just uncovered. By the time we reached the estate, exhaustion had settled over all of us in a way that felt different from the adrenaline-driven crashes after Ashgrove or the docks. This wasn’t the ordinary fatigue of danger surviving into safety. It was heavier, slower, the particular we
THE BILLIONAIRE'S STAND-IN BRIDE SEVENTY-EIGHT
Aria’s POV Dmitri secured both men quickly, radioing for a second vehicle to transport them while Romeo swept the rest of the building’s perimeter, confirming no one else remained hidden inside. Only once the property was fully cleared did Romanov finally let me step through the doorway, his hand resting briefly against the small of my back, a silent promise that he was still right there beside me. I paused just past the threshold, letting my eyes adjust to the dim interior light, my pulse still racing from everything that had happened in the clearing. Whatever fear I’d carried on the drive here had shifted into something sharper now, something closer to anticipation than dread. The main room was smaller than I’d expected, though every inch of it felt weighted with significance the moment I crossed the threshold. The long table Dmitri had described sat centered beneath a bare overhead bulb, papers spread across its surface in loose, deliberate stacks, as though whoever had been wo
THE BILLIONAIRE'S STAND-IN BRIDE SEVENTY-SEVEN
Aria’s POV The gunshot’s echo hadn’t even finished fading before Dmitri was moving, waving us both back toward denser cover while Romeo’s voice crackled sharp with alarm over comms. “That came from inside,” Romeo said. “Everyone hold position, I’m moving to the eastern entrance now.” “Negative,” Dmitri said, his voice flat and controlled in the way it only got when a plan had already changed shape without his permission. “We don’t know what that shot means yet. Could be a struggle inside. Could be someone eliminating a witness before we reach them.” My stomach dropped at the thought. “You think they’re hurting someone in there?” “I think we don’t know,” Dmitri said, “which is exactly why we’re not rushing in blind.” We held at the tree line another agonizing few seconds, the morning silence pressing back down over the clearing as though the gunshot had never happened at all. My heart hammered against my ribs, every possibility racing through my mind at once, none of them good.
THE BILLIONAIRE'S STAND-IN BRIDE SEVENTY-SIX
Aria’s POV The drive to the Gathering House took just under an hour, the road narrowing steadily from paved county highway to a rough, unmarked track that Dmitri’s satellite imagery had barely managed to capture. Romanov drove in silence beside me, his attention split between the road and the tactical display mounted on the dash, tracking Elena’s position in the support vehicle a half mile back. Neither of us spoke much during the drive. There wasn’t much left to say that the terrace hadn’t already covered, and some quiet part of me suspected we were both saving whatever nerve we had left for whatever waited at the end of the road rather than spending it on words that wouldn’t change anything now. “Two minutes to the tree line,” Dmitri’s voice said over comms, steady despite the hour. “Romeo’s team is already in position on the eastern approach.” “Copy that,” Romanov said. “We’re proceeding to the northern edge now.” We parked where the access road bent away from the property, w
THE BILLIONAIRE'S STAND-IN BRIDE SEVENTY-FIVE
Aria’s POV The final briefing ended just after three, Dmitri dismissing the security team to prepare equipment while Romeo retreated to a spare room to catch what little sleep he could before dawn. Elena stayed close to the monitors Dmitri had set up in the study, testing the comm channel twice more than necessary, her way of steadying nerves she wouldn’t admit to having. I found myself unable to sit still, the tight, restless feeling in my chest refusing to settle no matter how many times I told myself the plan was as solid as it could be. I walked the length of the study twice before finally stepping out onto the terrace, needing the cold air more than I needed rest. Romanov found me there a few minutes later, joining me at the railing without a word at first, simply standing close enough that his presence alone said more than anything he might have offered aloud. “You should be resting,” he said eventually. “So should you.” “I will,” he said. “Once I know you’re actually goi
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