Liam's POVI barely had time to think about it when the door flew open, so fast it hit the wall with a loud bang. Sarah ran in, hugging her laptop to her chest like it was a treasure. Her hair was wild, and her eyes were shining with that wild look she always had when something big had just happened.Anna followed her, clearly shaken with her hands moving like she didn’t know whether to stop her or say sorry.“Mr. Carter, I’m so sorry,” Anna said quickly. “I tried to stop her, but—”“It’s okay, Anna,” I said, raising a hand. “You know Sarah. When she’s in the zone, no one can stop her. Not even you.”Sarah didn’t say a word to us. She went straight to the table, opened her laptop, and connected it to the big screen like she’d done it a hundred times. Her fingers moved fast, like magic, and in seconds, the screen lit up with a satellite photo.“Got it,” she said with a proud smile. “Tracked the flash drive. And guess what?”I stepped closer. I already had a feeling what she’d say. “T

Liam's POVThe van came to a stop a little far from the warehouse. The engine went quiet, and dust rose around us. My heart was beating fast. This was it. After days of searching and taking risks, we were finally here, ready to face Blackwood’s group.“Alright,” Locke said in a calm but serious tone. He looked at us, his eyes hard in the dim light. “Sarah, you stay here. Watch the camera feeds and guide us. If anything goes wrong, you’ll be our eyes.”“Got it,” Sarah said, already working on her laptop. Her face was lit up by the screen. “I’m watching everything. I’ll let you know if something looks weird.”Then Locke turned to Hans and me. “Okay, listen. We go in quietly. We want to surprise them and get them to give up without a fight. No one should get hurt. But,” his face got serious, “if they fight, we protect ourselves. Understand?”We all nodded and I swallowed hard. My mouth felt dry. I looked at the pistol at my side. Locke had shown me how to use it, but I wasn’t good with

Liam's POVSheriff Grey’s words slowly registered in my head. “Under arrest? What for?” I asked, louder than I meant to. Sarah, who was standing behind me, gasped at the same time.Grey’s eyes were cold and unmoving. “Yesterday’s shooting left several people dead. They were innocent workers, Mr. Carter.”“What?” I said, shocked. “That’s crazy! We went there to save someone! Those weren’t workers!”Sarah stepped up with her eyes full of fire. “Sheriff, you’ve got it all wrong! “This has to be a mistake! Liam would never do that…”Grey cut her off. “He had help. People working with Mr. Carter. We believe they’re part of this too. We’re bringing them in.”My heart sank. Hans. Locke. I had to protect them. “Listen,” I said, trying to sound calm. “I was alone. If something happened, it was just me. Arrest me alone.”Grey smirked like he was enjoying this. “That’s brave of you, Mr. Carter. But we’ll find out the truth. Cuff him.”Two officers came forward and the handcuffs clicked shu

Ryan's POVI sat on the couch with my legs resting on the coffee table, holding a half-full bottle of beer in my hand. The local news was on the TV with the anchor sounding quite serious. “Billionaire CEO, Liam Carter was held for a short time today because of a shooting at a warehouse last night, but he’s been let go due to…”The camera showed Liam walking out of the sheriff's office. Reporters rushed toward him, pushing microphones at him.“Mr. Carter, what do you say about the people who died?”“Mr. Carter, were you part of the shooting?”“Mr. Carter, why were you at the warehouse?”Liam stopped with his face showing no emotion. “It was all a mix-up,” he said calmly. “The police and I worked everything out. That’s all there is to it.”The reporters shouted more questions. Before Liam could speak again, Hans Hoffman stepped forward like a wall.“No more questions,” Hans said clearly. He led Liam away, protecting him from the press until they got into a car.I suddenly felt angry a

Ryan's POVWith a deep breath, I pushed away from the desk. I had to leave this place. I needed a plan. And maybe, just maybe, I could use Silas to help me.I grabbed my jacket and threw it over my shoulder. I picked up my car keys from the desk and walked out, feeling the workers' eyes on me all the way.The Golden Dragon was just what I thought, small and dark, but fitting for Scratch. Silas was already there, sitting at a table in the back, holding a drink that looked like whiskey.I walked over to him with my jaw tight. “You’ve got a lot of nerve,” I said, sitting across from him.Silas looked up with a cold light in his eyes. “Relax, kid. I’m not here to make things worse. Maybe easier, but not worse.”I gave a short laugh. “Sure. You’re here to ‘help’ me. That’s funny.”He leaned back, looking at me without blinking. “I won’t lie. I wasn’t happy about this either. But your dad made me an offer I couldn’t say no to. I’ve learned how to play this game. He wants me to do a job,