LOGINRobert’s face had gone dark with rage.The board was in open panic now. Two members were arguing near the front, one of Robert’s lawyers was already on the phone. Security hovered uncertainly at the edges, no longer sure who they were protecting. Reporters shouted for comment, for confirmation, for copies, for names.And then officials stepped in.Two financial crime investigators flanked by legal enforcement officers moved through the crowd with documents already in hand. Someone had been called the second the files began to spread, maybe by the press, I did not care.One of them addressed Robert directly.“Mr. Norway, you need to come with us.”The room seemed to hold its breath.Robert looked at the badge. Then at the papers, then at me.There was no smile left on his face now, just hatred.The kind that no longer bothered to wear a tie.“This is not over,” he said quietly.I looked him straight in the eyes.“It is for me.”That was the moment, the real one.It was that second.The
POV: HaileyMorning came too fast.I did not think I slept at all, but somehow the dark outside the hideout windows had turned thin and gray, and then the gray had given way to pale light. It felt wrong that the sun was rising on a day like this, wrong that the world could still move so normally when my whole life was balanced on what would happen in the next few hours.The room around me was already alive with movement.Laptops open, screens glowing, voices low and sharp, pages printing, phones buzzing. Kingsley’s men moved in and out of the main space with the kind of focus that left no room for panic, cpies of the files had already been made. One set on encrypted drives, one sent to secured channels, one held back in case everything else failed.Nobody was taking chances, not today.I stood near the table in the corner, staring down at the outfit my mother had laid out for me earlier. It was simple and clean. A fitted ivory blouse tucked into dark trousers, sharp enough to make me
POV: HaileyThe gun did not shake or move from where he pointed it at.My lungs locked. My skin turned cold, every sound inside the room changed shape. The hum of the system behind me became louder. The tiny buzz of the overhead light pressed into my skull. I could hear Kingsley breathing, could hear Brandson swallow, I could hear my own heartbeat punching so hard against my ribs that it almost felt like another sound in the room.But the hand holding the gun stayed steady.Steady meant prepared, steady meant he had done this before, steady meant if anyone moved too fast, I would be the one to pay for it.“One more step,” the man repeated, his voice clipped and flat, “and she dies.”Brandson froze so hard the tendons in his neck stood out, his hands were half-curled at his sides like he wanted to tear the weapon apart with his bare fingers. Kingsley stood just to his left, shoulders rigid, eyes locked on the man’s wrist, his elbow, the angle of the barrel, every possible weakness.I k
POV: HaileyThe footsteps did not rush.If someone had run toward the door, if I had heard panic or shouting or the sharp pounding of boots, maybe my body would have known what to do, maybe fear would have turned clean and simple.Should I run, hide or fight?But these footsteps were calm, measured and unhurried.Like whoever was coming already believed the room belonged to him, like he had all the time in the world.My mouth went dry.“Hailey.” Kingsley’s voice came through my earpiece, low and tight. “Listen to me carefully, do not touch anything, step away from the screen and head toward the back wall.”I looked around quickly. There was no real back wall, just a narrow strip of space behind me, a black cabinet, and nowhere to disappear.“There’s nowhere to go,” I whispered.“Then hold your position,” he said immediately. I could hear movement on his side now, voices layered under his, fast and tense. “We’re coming in.”“No,” my mother’s voice cut through faintly from somewhere nea
POV: HaileyThe car hadn’t fully stopped before I opened the door.“Hailey—” Kingsley’s voice came sharp behind me.“I’m not waiting,” I said, stepping out.Cold night air hit my face, but it didn’t calm the storm inside me. If anything, it made everything sharper and clearer.Tonight, this ends tonight.Footsteps followed me quickly. Kingsley caught up in seconds, grabbing my wrist—not harsh, but firm enough to stop me.“You don’t rush into something like this,” he said, his voice low but tight with control. “Not when we don’t know all the variables.”I turned to him.“We know enough,” I said. “He’s moving everything. If we miss this, I become his shield forever.”His jaw tightened.“That’s exactly why you shouldn’t be the one walking in first.”I held his gaze.“And who should?” I asked quietly. “You?”He didn’t answer because he couldn’t.We both knew the truth, this was mine.“I’m not going in there as a victim this time,” I said, my voice steady despite the pounding in my chest.
POV: HaileyI stopped walking.My body refused to move, like my feet had been nailed to the ground. The air inside the hideout suddenly felt too thick, too heavy, like I was breathing through water.The figure stepped forward in a slow, calm and unbothered manner.The dim light above flickered once, then steadied—and his face came into view.My heart slammed hard against my ribs.“No…” I whispered.Kingsley moved instantly, stepping in front of me, his arm slightly stretched out like a barrier. “Don’t come any closer.”His voice was low, dangerous and protective.The man didn’t stop immediately, but he didn’t look threatened either. If anything, he looked… tired.“I’m not here to fight,” he said.That voice, I knew that voice.My fingers curled into my palm, nails digging into my skin. “You should be dead.”Silence fell.Behind me, I could feel Brandson tense. I didn’t need to look at him to know his expression had darkened.Kingsley didn’t lower his guard. “Explain yourself. Now.”Th
Hailey's POV The lights in the hospital didn’t flicker, they went off immediately One second the hallway was blinding white, sterile and sharp, and the next it was swallowed whole—like someone had reached out and snapped the spine of the building. The hum of machines cut off mid-note. The air-con
Hailey's POV The jet was already in the air when the weight finally hit me.Not during the sprint across the tarmac.Not when the engines roared to life beneath my feet, not even when New York fell away beneath a blanket of clouds.It came in the quiet.The kind of quiet that presses against your
Hailey's POV “Die?” What the hell does she mean by that?. I was still trying to process what she said when the lights suddenly went out with a sound that felt wrong.There was no flicker, no soft fade.The power died like it had been executed, like someone is tampering with the connections.One se
Hailey's POV The car ride felt longer than it should have.Not because of traffic, or distance, or the late hour—but because of the silence. It sat between us like a third body in the back of the SUV, heavy and unmovable. I pressed myself against the cool glass of the window, staring out at the bl







