"I am the Master of the Gym!" he screamed at the empty room, his voice cracking with a hysterical edge. "I built this! I own every soul in these pits! And she treats me like a doorman!"He seized a heavy bronze bust of himself and hurled it through the glass-fronted cabinet. The sound of shattering crystal filled the office, yet it couldn't drown out the roar in his ears."A vault? You want a vault, Tatiana?" He kicked his desk, the heavy wood groaning. "I'll give you a vault! I'll find it before you do, and I'll bury that black-haired rat inside it!"He began to pace like a caged animal, stepping over broken glass and soaked ledgers. He spat a stream of vile insults at the boy, the woman, and the world that dared to make him feel small."You think you’re smart, Tinny?" Vargus snarled, his eyes darting to the monitor where the boy lay still. "You think you can play the goddess against the king? I’ll peel that smirk off your face with a rusted blade. I’ll make you beg for the Ring!"

It wasn't her usual polite, bored smile.It was a wide, jagged flash of teeth, the grin of a shark that had finally tasted blood."Is that your result, Vargus?" she asked, her voice dripping with syrupy mockery. "He’s beautiful, truly. I especially like the way he looks on his knees.""Shut up!" Vargus roared, spinning to face her. His chest heaved. "This isn't over! My men will—""Your men will do nothing," Tatiana interrupted. Her grin widened until the cruelty reached her emerald eyes. She tilted her head, watching a vein throb in Vargus’s forehead. "You look stressed. Is it the heat? Or the realization that you just paid a fortune to give my weapon a live-fire exercise?"Vargus’s hand flew to his bruised cheek, the skin still tender from her slap. The sight of her enjoyment, the pure, unadulterated joy she took in his humiliation, stung more than the blow. She wasn't just winning; she was feasting on his ruin."You think you’ve won?" Vargus hissed, his voice trembling with a

However, at that moment, the screaming began. These weren't the cries of debtors, but the frantic shouts of his own security."Sir! The fire is spreading to the main hangar! We have to move!"Vargus didn't budge. He watched the flames. Through the smoke, a figure emerged, a woman in a midnight-blue dress, scorched and tattered, her hair a wild mane of soot and gold. Tatiana was dragging something. A body."She’s alive?" Vargus hissed, his eyes bulging. "Sniper! Take the shot!"If he couldn't have her, no one would.A sharp crack rang out from the roof. Tatiana jerked. She didn't fall, but she stumbled, her hand flying to her shoulder. She looked up, her eyes finding the muzzle flash. Even from this distance, Vargus could see the defiance in her gaze. She didn't stop. She continued to drag the stretcher carrying the unconscious, bandaged form of Tinny toward the exit."Kill her!" Vargus roared, losing all composure. "Kill them both!"Another shot rang out, catching Tatiana in the

Vargus’s men scrambled, sliding down rappel lines and racing through stairwells with the desperation of hounds chasing a ghost. Vargus stood at the shattered window, the wind whipping his blood-soaked shirt against his skin. His lungs burned, and his vision swam, but the adrenaline kept him upright."Report!" he barked into his earpiece."Sir," a voice crackled through the static and the roar of the downpour. "We're at the impact site. The parking structure roof is caved in. There’s... there’s a hell of a lot of blood."Vargus felt a flicker of savage hope. "And the boy? The pendant?"There was a long, suffocating pause."The car is gone, sir. We found a shattered skylight and a pool of red, but the rain is washing it away as fast as we can track it. There’s no body. No pendant. Just an empty floor."Vargus’s scream was lost in the thunder. He slammed his fist into the remaining glass, ignoring the shards that sliced into his knuckles.He had beaten the life out of the boy, had watc

Zarek's eyes narrowed."A fall like that, even with a car waiting, he's going to be hurting. But he's your brother, Zarek. If anyone can heal on the run and come back for seconds, it's a Landi." Shaw kept his voice steady, trying to pull Zarek back from the edge.Zarek stared at the hotel entrance, the rain blurring his vision."I hope you're right. Because if he isn't okay, I'm not just going to burn the Apex ruins. I'm going to burn every name in that Vault until there's nothing left of this city but ash.""Hot coffee first," Shaw said, opening his door. "Vengeance second."The limousine stopped in front of a large hotel. The hotel sat at the edge of the district where the wealth of the Spire met the grit of the docks, the kind of place that offered luxury to those who didn't want to be seen, high-end finishes behind reinforced concrete walls.Shaw grabbed their bags, his frame shielding Zarek from the lashing rain as they moved toward the lobby.Inside, the air was filtered and sm