Or so she thought. She feared that knowing this information, someone was going to kidnap her.Felicia’s mind raced as she sat in the backseat of the cab heading toward the small apartment she shared with Mark. Her breath came in shallow gasps, and her hands trembled uncontrollably in her lap. The revelation about her parentage had shaken her to the core. Eleanor Blackwood, her biological mother? The truth was almost too surreal to comprehend. The woman she had thought was her mother—Victoria Feathering—had lied to her, manipulated her entire life for power.Felicia clenched her fists, her heart aching. Every decision Victoria had made, every manipulation, every act of cruelty toward Mark—it all made sense now. The Featherings had destroyed the Blackwoods, stolen their legacy, and now expected her to betray the one person she trusted most.Mark.She reached for her phone again, her fingers hovering over his number. She had to tell him everything. The betrayal, the lies, the danger. He

The SUV screeched to a halt in front of the sprawling Blackwood estate, a house that had once symbolized power, legacy, and untouchable wealth. Now, it felt like an uneasy sanctuary amidst the chaos. Mark helped Felicia out of the car, his eyes scanning the shadows for any sign of pursuit. The night was eerily quiet, but his instincts screamed that they weren’t safe yet.Grayson stepped out and leaned against the vehicle, her sharp eyes assessing the surroundings. “This where you’re hiding out?” she asked, a trace of skepticism in her voice.Mark gave her a curt nod. “It’s more secure than it looks. Butler Thompson has been keeping it off the radar.”Felicia looked up at the towering structure, the weight of the evening pressing down on her. “Let’s just get inside.”The heavy oak doors creaked open as Butler Thompson greeted them, his expression shifting from relief to alarm as he took in their disheveled appearances. “Master Mark, Madam Felicia, what in heaven’s name happened?”Mark’

Felicia’s pulse quickened as Edward’s face came into view, his smug expression illuminated by the flickering lights of the warehouse. The cold concrete beneath her feet sent shivers up her spine as the two masked men dragged her forward, her wrists still bound tightly. She stumbled, but they held her upright, their grips bruising her arms.Edward stepped closer, his every movement deliberate. His dark eyes studied her, a sinister gleam in them. “Well, Felicia,” he began, his voice smooth and condescending, “you’ve been quite the thorn in my side.”Felicia glared at him, summoning all the courage she could muster. “What do you want from me?” she demanded, her voice sharper than she expected.Edward tilted his head, his smirk widening. “Straight to the point, I see. I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. You always did have that… defiant streak. It’s one of the few things I respect about you.” He gestured toward a rickety chair in the middle of the room. “Please, have a seat. Let’s talk.”

The air in the Blackwood Archives felt suffocating, each step echoing ominously in the dimly lit corridors. Mark’s jaw tightened as he followed Julian deeper into the labyrinth, his mind racing with Edward’s cryptic text still fresh on his phone.Grayson walked beside him, her sharp eyes scanning the area for any signs of danger. “This guy of yours,” she whispered, her tone dripping with suspicion. “How much can we trust him?”Mark didn’t respond immediately. Julian had once been an ally—a dangerous, unpredictable one. Back in the days when Mark had worked to uncover the Feathering family’s crimes, Julian had provided critical intel… but at a steep price.“Not much,” Mark finally admitted, his voice low. “But he knows this place better than anyone. If he says he has the ledger, he does.”Grayson snorted. “Great. A deal with the devil. What could go wrong?”Ahead of them, Julian glanced back, his scarred face twisting into a smirk. “You two whispering sweet nothings back there? Don’t w

The rain poured heavily over Black City, washing the blood from Mark’s bruised knuckles as he stood on the edge of the pier, the echoes of Edward’s taunts ringing in his head. His face was pale, his heart pounding harder than it ever had before. Felicia was alive—but for how long?Behind him, Grayson staggered to her feet, pressing a makeshift bandage to the bullet wound on her arm. The gunfire had stopped, Edward’s men retreating into the shadows. But the damage was already done. Edward had won this round, and they both knew it.Mark stared down at the phone still clutched in his hand. The screen was black, but the image of Felicia’s terrified face was burned into his mind. Every instinct in him screamed to chase Edward down and tear the truth from him. But there was more to this now—this wasn’t just personal.It was political.Elsewhere — Black City HallSenator Louis Deveraux sat behind his massive mahogany desk, his fingers steepled as he listened to the quiet hum of the rain outs