Justin's pov The beeping of the heart monitor is the first thing I hear. Then the pain. A crushing weight on my chest, like a fist squeezing my heart. I gasp, my vision swimming as I claw at the hospital sheets. Mary. The memories slam into me her empty closet, the missing jewels, the betrayal burning through my veins. And my shares. Gone. A nurse rushes in, her face tight with forced calm. "Mr. Xander, you need to relax" "Where’s my phone?" My voice is a ragged growl. She hesitates, then hands it to me with trembling fingers. My first call is to my Detective the man who’s handled my delicate matters for years. He answers on the second ring. "Detective," I snap. "Mary’s gone. I need her found. Now." A beat of silence. Then "Sorry, Justin. Can’t help you this time." My grip tightens on the phone. "What the hell does that mean?" "It means I work for Zac now." The line goes dead. I stare at the phone, my breath coming in short, furious bursts. Zac. Of c

Kelvin povEddy’s voice comes through the speaker, sharp and satisfied. “We’ve got her, boss.”I’m halfway through a glass of red wine when the words hit. I set the glass down slowly on the table, my mind racing. Across from me, Lydia lounges on the couch, her bare feet curled beneath her, her fingers twirling her wine glass. She looks up, sensing the change in my posture.“Where is she?” I ask Eddy.“Safe house. She’s tied up. Thought you’d want to do the honors.” He chuckles darkly.My mouth tightens. “I’ll be there in twenty.”“No, you won’t.” Lydia sets her glass down, suddenly alert. She leans forward. “Eddy, wait.”Eddy hesitates. “Uh… yes?”“You’re not taking him there,” Lydia says firmly, turning to face me. “I’ll go.”I raise a brow. “What are you talking about?”“You don’t need to see her,” she says. “It’ll mess with your head. You’re too close to this.”“I’m not close to anything,” I reply, though even I can hear the lie.Lydia walks toward me, kneels at my side, and places

I sit in the boardroom alone, my eyes fixed on the wall across from me. The silence feels heavier than usual. It’s not just silence it’s anticipation. Tension. War drums beating in the background of a storm I should have seen coming. But the strangest part? My company isn’t shaking. Not yet. That’s the only advantage of being a ghost at the top. No one really knew I was the real CEO of Eclipse Group. Until now.The scandal with Brianna made headlines, of course, but only as celebrity gossip. At first. “Successful Business Woman Kisses Mystery Man” was a mild ripple. But ripples grow.And when people start connecting dots my presence around Lydia, my constant shadowing of operations, Olivia occasionally slipping and addressing me as “Sir” instead of “Kel” it doesn’t take long before speculation becomes investigation.I didn’t expect it to unravel this quickly. Olivia did her best to intercept the growing threads of online curiosity. Lydia gave the order herself, sharp and precise: “Cle

The morning air is unusually crisp, like it’s warning me something’s about to shift.I sit at the edge of the long glass conference table, staring out the window while pretending to read a report Olivia sent an hour ago. But my mind is far from the stock projections. It’s on Mary.I clear my throat and finally ask, “Where’s Mary?”Lydia, across from me, pauses mid-sip of her espresso. Her eyes narrow a little, barely noticeable if you don’t know her, but I do.“She’s still at the safehouse,” she says flatly.I nod and stand. “I want to see her.”Lydia stiffens. She doesn't say anything at first, but I see the regret flashing behind her composed expression. I know exactly what she’s thinking that if she hadn’t acted out of jealousy, if she had just let me confront Mary earlier, maybe this whole mess with Brianna wouldn’t have escalated into a scandal.But she says nothing.I leave without another word.Mary is curled on the corner couch when I step into the safehouse’s lounge area. Her

Zac’s POV The city sprawls beneath my penthouse window, a glittering empire waiting to be claimed. I sip my whiskey, savoring the burn. Everything is falling into place. The drug routes are secure Mexico, Thailand, Colombia each one pumping money into my veins faster than the stock market ever could. Kwang handles the dirty work, the cops are in my pocket, and the shareholders? They kneel without me even asking. Power tastes sweeter than I imagined. My phone buzzes. A report from Kwang: Mary still missing. Safehouse locations negative. I dismiss it with a flick of my thumb. Mary doesn’t matter anymore. She’s a loose end, not a threat. No, the real prize is Brianna. And she’s about to learn what happens when she says no to me. Brianna’s POVThe knock at my office door is too forceful to be polite. I don’t bother looking up. “Come in, Zac.” The door swings open, his cologne dark and expensive filling the room before he does. “You’re getting predictable,” I