The scream tore out of him. He fumbled for his gun—but the driver’s hand was already on it, smooth and quicker than thought, wrenching it away and unloading the magazine with a flat, clinical motion.Blake’s uncle raised his hands, useless now. The passenger door slammed open. Strong hands dragged him out, shoved him down hard. Steel pressed to his temple. He bit back a sound that wasn’t pain so much as disbelief.How had he fallen for it? The caretaker had warned about a secret exit only trusted guards knew. He’d thought himself clever—too clever.“Get the box,” Cole said, voice low enough to chill the night.A security man moved, taking the box from the back. From the corner of his eye, Blake’s uncle watched his five men — the ones who’d sworn loyalty and blood — forced into an unmarked black car. No license plate. No light. They were bundled in like merchandise.Something heavier than fear flooded him: shame. Regret. The memory of face

“Have you seen the meaning of dangerous now?!” she yelled over the roar of the wind.“Amanda—pl—please stop!” Cole’s voice cracked. His eyes were wide, knuckles white against the dashboard. They were inches from the railing—one wrong move and they’d plunge straight into the river.“Do you understand dangerous now?!” she screamed, eyes blazing with something between rage and mischief.“I do! I do now!” Cole shouted, like a man at gunpoint being forced to confess.“Okay then!” Amanda yanked the steering wheel back onto the road, the car fishtailing before straightening. But she didn’t slow down. Not even a bit.“Will you tell me now?” she asked, calm again. Too calm.Cole turned his head slowly toward her. “You’re insane.”She grinned. “Takes one to know one, husband.”Shit. Cole stared at Amanda. Talk about crazy.“You still think it’s crazy?” she shot back, catching his look.“There’s an herb t

Amanda picked up the phone with her public number — the one everyone had.Predictably, her inbox was a disaster zone.Hundreds of messages.Most of them ridiculous.Like, who even wakes up and texts a celebrity asking for ten million dollars for a “collaboration” when she didn’t even know their name? Jokers. All of them.She was about to drop the phone when a video from an unknown number caught her attention.Her frown deepened as she clicked it open.Cole appeared on the screen — standing in a dimly lit room with two other men. Not the kind of men you’d want to be seen with. The type that made the air feel heavy.Then came a voice: “Wire the rest of the money. We already got ten million. The remaining two million won’t kill you. Then we hand over the flash drive with the real stuff.”Amanda froze.What the hell was she watching? Cole? With them?She replayed it, eyes narrowing.Fo

How did she even come up with the name?Logic—pure, panicked logic.Watch enough mafia series and you’ll see Matteo appear at least ten times. And it’s always the name of the boss, the boss’s son, or the boss’s shadow.It had to count for something.It did.Because the smoking guy and the man with the sword exchanged a sharp glance.“Does Boss have a…mistress?” the smoking guy asked, and Amanda heard the fear bleeding into his tone.“Boss?” another man echoed from the entrance. “What happened? He’s been calling someone lately. Doesn’t say who, but he—”He paused, correcting himself mid-sentence.“He makes…jokes. On the phone. With that person.”The smoking guy slowly turned back to the one with the sword.“Which Matteo are you talking about?” he asked Amanda—trying very hard to sound threatening, but his voice carried that careful edge of someone afraid to accidentally insult the wrong person.Amanda looke

Chaos erupted. Men cursed as they got their weapons ready. They scattered instantly.Outside, Amanda was sprinting with Blake — the idiot had tripped twice already.“Get the fuck—”A gunshot split the air.The rest of her words died as she hit the ground hard.Footsteps thundered closer.This was it.The end.She squeezed her eyes shut—More gunshots.Closer.Louder.The kind of sound that made everything feel like she’d been dropped straight into an action movie.“Are you okay, ma’am?” a familiar voice asked.Slowly, Amanda lifted her head. The guy kneeling beside her—Scarface—was one of the men who’d helped rescue them from Blake’s uncle the other day.“Where is Cole?” she asked instantly, eyes darting around.“I couldn’t reach him, ma’am—”“Good.” She cut him off. “Have you taken care of those men?”(Obviously he had. Dumb question, but her brain was