Novels by Bami

The night before the wedding stretched out before us like a vast, unmapped tundra. Every light in the penthouse was dimmed, yet the air felt thick, charged with a static electricity that made the fine hairs on my arms stand up. Helen and I had been working for eighteen hours straight, mapping every conceivable exit from a trap that hadn't even been fully sprung yet. I saw the exhaustion in her eyes, but the determination on her face told me I wouldn’t be able to convince her to take a break.I felt the weight of it too. My fingers were sore. My back hurt and cracked any time I angled my body slightly. We ran solely on coffee and the sole awareness of the danger threatening us."Sloane’s call was to his old law firm," Helen murmured with relief, her voice weary but sharp as she tapped at her tablet. "He was checking if they’d take his case again. He’s not playing Julian, and he’s not playing us. He’s looking for a way out of the life.""A man looking for a way out is either dangerous

I didn’t wait for the morning to break before tearing into the files. If the game had changed, I needed to know the board better than anyone else.I sat in the dim light of my office, the screens casting a harsh, artificial glow over my face, while Davis fed me every scrap of data he could scrape from the digital ether regarding the name "Sloane."The dossier was a saddening graveyard of ambition that pricked my chest slightly. Sloane hadn't just been any ordinary detective; he had been the best investigator the Kingston PD had ever produced. He’d spent ten years climbing the ranks until he stumbled onto a case adjacent to the Council of Five—the shadowy cabal that effectively pulled the strings of this entire region. He didn't just get pushed out. No, no…he was systematically dismantled. A fabricated charge of planted evidence had effectively ended his career, stripped him of his badge, and left him a social pariah.I read the report twice, letting the details settle into my marro

The seventy-two hours following the RSVP update were quiet. Something was brewing in the heavy silence,a brutal restructuring that aimed to alter everything. While the city buzzed with the superficial excitement of the upcoming wedding, I spent my time in the heart of the Van Alen tower. Davis proved his worth by not just executing the six instructions I had given him, but weaponizing them.By the second day, the legal landscape of the wedding had been absolutely gutted.The church where Elara dreamt of walking down the aisle? Now owned by a Van Alen property shell. The reception venue’s primary creditor had been bought out, effectively turning the hall into our personal playground. As for the service providers, Julian had been blindsided by a wave of contract cancellations. His florist, caterer, and photographer had all found their schedules "suddenly compromised" by exclusive contracts with a shadow firm that traced back to my desk. They wouldn’t just be late—they wouldn’t show u

The cream-colored card felt heavy in my hand, a piece of high-grade cardstock that smelled faintly of expensive perfume and arrogance.I traced the embossed silver lettering and I scoffed lightly: Elara Thorne and Julian Vane. It was a bold invitation, a social death warrant disguised as a celebration. They were inviting me to witness my own obsolescence, completely unaware that I was the one holding the axe.Alfred stood at the edge of the table, his posture as rigid as a sentry. He hadn't moved an inch since placing the tray down, his eyes fixed on some middle distance above my head. He was a man who understood the value of silence, but today, I could sense his curiosity hovering just beneath the surface."Is everything alright, sir?" he asked, his voice dropping to a whisper."Everything is perfect, Alfred," I said, a slow grin spreading across my face. "I was just wondering if our guests have any idea what happens when they invite a storm into their house."Before he could answer

I was back in Kingston three days later. It had been the best "vacation" of my life, though it was the only one I’d ever had. Helen was a revelation; between sharing my bed and the quiet moments in the penthouse, she had taught me more about the Van Alen Dynasty than any textbook could."You need to learn how to shoot, Carter," she said as we rode in a matte-black Bugatti toward the estate."Someday," I replied dismissively. I had no desire to touch the cold steel of a weapon again."You’re going to need it. Range practice. Tomorrow," she insisted. I looked at her, but her expression was a deadpan wall."Fine," I surrendered. "But it doesn't mean I’m going to start carrying one."She just smirked. "You'll get the hang of it.""I won't. Right now, I need a new wardrobe. I’ll find the nearest boutique and—""Christ, you don't need to 'find' anything," she interrupted, looking horrified. "Tell me what you need, and I’ll have the designers deliver a seasonal collection by tonight.""I’m m

I was relieved the board meeting didn’t last as long as I’d feared. Every suit around that massive, round mahogany desk had stared at me as if I were a glitch in the system. The shock was universal: the new heir to the Van Alen Dynasty was far younger—and far more of a nobody—than they had prepared for.The New York headquarters was a sprawling glass-and-steel cathedral of commerce, towering over the city. With every new property I encountered, my sense of wonder grew. The moment the session concluded, I rose to my feet. A man with a flawless white beard and equally snowy hair caught my hand in a firm, dry grip."How about you join us for a small celebration we’re hosting in your honor, Mr. Van Alen?" the man asked. His green, glassy eyes crinkled with a polished smile. "It would be a pleasure to have you grace the event tonight."A party? For me? My ego, bruised by years of Elara’s dismissals, hummed with a new, dangerous frequency. I kept my composure, nodding slowly. "I’ll certainl