“I have no idea what happened,” Felix said into the phone, pacing around his office as if that would calm him down. “Nate hasn’t been seen for a week and two days now. I’ve already asked around and tried looking for him, but it’s like he disappeared off the face of the earth.”He stopped by the edge of his desk, pressing a hand against it while waiting for the person on the other end to respond.“If we find your brother, we’ll let you know immediately,” the voice finally said.Felix nodded slowly, his jaw tightening. “Good. Just… keep me updated. I don’t care what time it is—call me the moment you hear anything.”“Understood.”The call ended with a soft click. Felix lowered the phone from his ear and exhaled deeply.His eyes darkened as his thoughts spiraled. Where could my brother have gone? What happened to him?Unable to find him on his own, Felix had hired a private investigator, but so far, the man had come up empty. It was beginning to feel like he’d hired the wrong person for

The sudden silence in the lobby was palpable. People exchanged glances; murmurs spread like wildfire through the crowd. None of them could believe the man had come down for someone who didn’t seem important. Since the two had seen him and insisted he wasn’t, others had decided to believe it too.“Wait…was Mr. Rowe really here for him?” one employee whispered, eyes wide.Another shook his head. “I mean…he’s Felix Rowe. Why would he come down on himself for some guy?”“But look how quickly he went straight to him. He wasn’t paying attention to anyone else.”Slowly, the murmurs swelled into a low hum of realization. “No, seriously…he was here for Sean,” someone said, leaning closer to a colleague. “Did you see how fast he moved? That’s not casual at all.”“And he greeted him so personally…like they knew each other,” another added, nodding toward Sean and Felix, who were now standing side by side.The mockery dissolved into quiet astonishment. A few people even whispered apologies for

Sean looked at Felix quietly, wondering why the man was overthinking so much before even hearing the rest. But Felix was already spiraling.His breathing grew shallow as he gripped his head with both hands, his elbows pressing against the desk.“No… no, that can’t be,” Felix muttered, his voice shaking. “If you saw him there—then that means—” He stopped, swallowing hard, his hands trembling slightly. “He can’t walk, Sean,” he said suddenly, voice breaking as he looked up. “He can’t even stand properly without help. There’s no way—no way he could’ve escaped that fire.”His words came out in gasps now, panic taking hold.“You don’t understand,” he continued, shaking his head over and over. “Nate’s legs… they were still healing. He needed a cane, sometimes even help to move around. There’s no way he could’ve made it out on his own. Not from a fire that big…”He clutched his head tighter, his voice cracking as he whispered, “He would’ve died in there.”Sean’s calm eyes watched him in sile

Sean had barely taken two steps toward the corridor when someone stepped into his path—a man dressed in the most ridiculous outfit he’d seen all night.Bright blue velvet jacket. Red shoes that looked freshly polished. A scarf that shimmered gold when it caught the light.His face was painted white, his lips tinted a faint crimson, and a wide grin stretched across his face like it had been practiced too many times.“Evening, sir!” the man chirped, bowing low enough for the feather in his hat to almost brush the floor. “You must be one of tonight’s special guests.”Sean’s eyes narrowed behind his mask.He said nothing and moved to sidestep him, but the man danced lightly to block his path again, still smiling.“I wouldn’t recommend wandering off alone,” he said in a singsong tone. “The building’s a bit of a maze, you see. And even if you find the right floor, the auction seats might be completely taken by the time you do.”Sean paused, his gaze steady and unreadable.He didn’t like bein

It wasn’t hard for him to find the room, and he didn’t get lost like Jinx had thought he would.Sean stepped through the heavy double doors and into the auction room.A dim chandelier hung low over the crowd, its light trembling against the glossy black walls. The light flickered back and forth before going out.Looking around, Sean tried to find an empty seat since most of the chairs had been occupied.“Shipment’s coming in through East Dock,” a man whispered near the aisle, his tone clipped.“Are you sure it’s secure this time?” another muttered back, his hand resting near his jacket pocket where the outline of a pistol pressed faintly through the fabric.Across the room, two women dressed in glittering gowns leaned close, laughter spilling from painted lips.“They’re auctioning the diamond from the Ashworth vault tonight,” one said, eyes glinting.“Mm. And a few things not on the official list,” the other replied, her smile sharp as a blade.Sean’s gaze flicked over them once, then