Chapter One — The Man at the Funeral

The first thing Lena Carter noticed at her father's funeral was that nobody was crying.

Not really.

There were tears, of course.

Her stepmother, Evelyn, had spent the entire morning wiping her eyes with a black silk handkerchief. Her stepsister, Victoria, had cried so loudly that several guests had whispered about how devoted she must have been to her father.

But Lena knew them.

She knew the difference between grief and performance.

And what she saw around her that afternoon was a performance.

The Carter family mansion was filled with expensive black dresses, quiet conversations, and people who had arrived less to mourn Richard Carter than to find out what would happen to his fortune.

Lena stood beside the coffin, staring at the photograph placed above it.

Her father smiled from the frame.

It was the same smile she remembered from childhood.

Warm.

Confident.

Untouchable.

But something about it felt wrong now.

Three days earlier, Richard Carter had been alive.

He had called Lena late at night.

She remembered every word.

"Lena, whatever happens, don't trust anyone in this house."

She had laughed because she thought he was being dramatic.

"You're scaring me, Dad."

There had been silence on the other end.

Then he had said something she'd never forget.

"If something happens to me, find the blue room."

"What blue room?"

He hadn't answered.

The call had ended.

The next morning, he was dead.

The official explanation was a heart attack.

But Lena couldn't stop thinking about that phone call.

She looked toward Evelyn.

Her stepmother was speaking quietly to two of Richard's business partners.

Neither looked particularly heartbroken.

Lena's stomach tightened.

Someone touched her shoulder.

She turned.

Victoria.

Her stepsister wore a perfectly fitted black dress and an expression of practiced sadness.

"You should smile," Victoria whispered.

Lena stared at her.

"At my father's funeral?"

Victoria sighed.

"People are watching."

"I don't care."

"You should."

Victoria glanced toward the guests.

"Everyone is wondering what happens next."

Lena understood immediately.

The inheritance.

That was what everyone was waiting for.

Her father had owned Carter Holdings, several luxury hotels, apartment complexes, and a chain of private hospitals.

His fortune was enormous.

And now that he was dead, everyone wanted to know who would inherit it.

A lawyer approached the family.

"Mrs. Carter?"

Evelyn turned.

"Yes?"

"The reading of the will will take place this evening."

Evelyn's expression changed.

"This evening?"

"Mr. Carter left specific instructions."

Victoria stepped closer.

"Can't it wait?"

"I'm afraid not."

The lawyer looked at Lena.

"Your father specifically requested that Miss Carter be present."

Lena's heart skipped.

Why?

Why had her father insisted she be there?

Before she could ask, a black car stopped outside the mansion.

Several guests turned toward the window.

The car was unlike anything Lena had seen before.

Black.

Long.

Completely silent.

A man stepped out.

He was tall, dressed in a dark suit, and walked toward the mansion with the confidence of someone who didn't need permission to enter.

Lena watched him through the window.

She didn't know who he was.

But everyone else seemed to.

Conversations stopped.

Even Evelyn became still.

Victoria's face lost its color.

"Who is that?" Lena asked.

Nobody answered.

The front doors opened.

The man entered.

Two men followed behind him.

He removed his sunglasses.

His expression was unreadable.

His eyes moved across the room.

Then stopped on Lena.

For several seconds, neither of them looked away.

Lena felt an inexplicable chill.

He walked toward her.

"Miss Carter."

His voice was calm.

"Do I know you?"

"No."

"Then how do you know my name?"

"Everyone knows your name."

He reached into his jacket.

Lena stiffened.

But he pulled out a folded piece of paper.

He handed it to her.

She opened it.

Her eyes widened.

It was a marriage contract.

She looked up.

"What is this?"

The man's expression remained cold.

"Your father's final agreement."

Lena laughed nervously.

"You've got the wrong person."

"I don't."

She looked down at the contract again.

At the bottom was her father's signature.

And beside it was another signature.

Damian Romano.

Lena's heart stopped.

She knew that name.

Everyone did.

Damian Romano was the youngest billionaire CEO in the country.

He owned Romano International, a corporation so powerful that entire companies disappeared after competing against it.

Rumors followed him everywhere.

Some said he had connections to organized crime.

Others said he had inherited a criminal empire.

Nobody knew which stories were true.

But everyone agreed on one thing.

Damian Romano was dangerous.

Lena slowly raised her eyes.

"You expect me to marry you?"

"No."

His voice was almost frighteningly calm.

"I expect you to sign."

She stared at him.

"And if I don't?"

Damian stepped closer.

"Then your family loses everything."

The room went silent.

Lena looked toward Evelyn.

Her stepmother wouldn't meet her eyes.

That frightened Lena more than Damian's words.

"Why?" Lena asked.

Damian's jaw tightened.

"Because your father owed me a debt."

"What kind of debt?"

He looked directly into her eyes.

"One that only you can repay."

Lena shook her head.

"This is insane."

Damian leaned slightly closer.

Then he lowered his voice.

"Your father didn't die naturally."

Lena froze.

"What did you say?"

Damian straightened.

"Ask your stepmother what happened the night before his death."

Evelyn suddenly stepped forward.

"That's enough."

Damian looked at her.

For the first time, something dangerous appeared in his eyes.

"Is it?"

Evelyn's face went pale.

Lena looked between them.

"You know something."

Neither answered.

Then the lawyer entered the room.

"Miss Carter, everyone is waiting in the study."

Lena folded the contract.

She looked at Damian.

"I'm not marrying you."

He gave the faintest smile.

"We'll see."

Then he turned and walked away.

Lena watched him leave.

She didn't know it yet.

But by midnight, she would discover that her father had left her more than an inheritance.

He had left her a secret.

And that secret had already put a target on her back.