AriaAfter that call with Jack, I didn't waste any time getting ready. I quickly jumped out of my bed, hurried to my wardrobe, and threw on the quickest outfit I could put together, then jumped out of the room and made my way to meet Jack. At this point, I was more than anxious to find out who the mole in my company was, and I didn’t want to waste a chance to catch him or her… whoever they were.I'd called a cab to take me there. Luke had emphasized that I try to remain discreet, and showing up to my company in my five-hundred-thousand-dollar custom car was just going to give me away. I needed to keep my head low at least until we caught this culprit.The whole ride there, my mind was constantly filled with thoughts, and I just wanted this to be over. I wanted to be able to just enjoy the mundane things in life without looking over my shoulder or worrying too much about what my next move would be. That was a life I'd grown to now despise, but still, it wasn't so easy to just get out o

AriaThe alarm was deafening, and also at the worst possible time. The red emergency lights flashed down every hallway, with people pouring out of their offices in waves of panic. I hesitated for a moment, frustrated that my only possible lead had escaped, and then I shoved my way through the crowd, my eyes darting left and right, desperate to spot Pete. He couldn’t be far, I told myself. Not after slipping out of that boardroom seconds before me. If I could just grab him, just force him to finish what he was about to say, I could end this.As I hurried down the employees' lobby, I caught a glimpse of his gray suit disappearing into the rush of bodies and pushed harder, ignoring the sting of someone’s shoulder slamming into mine. My hand reached out, almost brushing against him, but that was when Jack’s grip clamped down on my arm.“Aria!” His voice cut through the noise, and he pulled me back sharply, making me lose sight of Pete.“Let go,” I snapped, twisting against him. “He’s rig

AriaLuke’s words wouldn’t leave my head. The whole ride back home, they looped in my mind like a bad song. ‘Maybe the person you’re looking for has been standing right next to Zion the whole time.’There was only one name that rang in my mind when he said that. Ellen.I wanted to scoff, to roll my eyes, to brush it off as Luke trying to stir drama. Ellen may have been a pain in the ass, but she wouldn’t go so far as to tear down my reputation. But the more I thought about it, the more pieces started to shift into place. She was everywhere Zion was, at the office, at Zion’s gym, at his house, conveniently popping up whenever she thought I wasn’t around. And the thing that stung most was that Zion never questioned it. He never pushed her away, never asked why she was suddenly so present. Maybe he thought it was harmless. Maybe he trusted her too much.I decided right then that I wouldn’t storm in, point fingers, or demand answers. No. If Ellen really was playing me, I’d let her think

AriaThe second Zion stepped into that room, I felt the ground shift under me. He wasn’t yelling, he wasn’t angry. That was the worst part. He just stood there in his charcoal suit, hands in his pockets, calm as if he had walked into a business meeting instead of a trap. His eyes flicked from Ellen to me, steady but unreadable.“What’s going on here?” he asked again, voice even.I swallowed hard and forced myself to speak before Ellen could twist anything. “I came here because I needed to see you. To talk to you. But then I see her—” I jabbed a finger toward Ellen, “—parading around like she’s your date, like she suddenly owns this company’s reputation. And then she drags me back here like I’m some uninvited guest trying to ruin your night.”Ellen didn’t move. Didn’t even flinch. She just crossed her arms and tilted her head, calm as a saint.“Zion,” I pressed, taking a step closer, “she’s playing a game. Can’t you see that? She’s been inserting herself everywhere around you, around t

AriaI thought it would be Pete. When I first saw the car, every part of me was sure it was him even when I walked toward that parked car. The way it sat there in the dark, with its engine humming, and its headlights off, it reeked of Pete’s kind of cowardly theatrics. My pulse was hammering, my palms were damp, but I told myself I could handle him. Whatever this was about. But when the window rolled down, all that bravado died. It wasn’t Pete. It was a face I hadn’t seen in four years. A face I hoped I would never see again.The man leaned into the glow of the dashboard, with a smug half-smile cutting across his face like he’d been waiting for this exact moment. And just like that, my chest felt tight. I was slammed back into memories of alarms screaming, shadows running, the deafening crack of gunfire. These were memories from the Fabergé Egg job. The one that went sideways. The night we barely escaped.I recognize this man because he was the one whose wrath we escaped from that da