"Adjust your cufflinks, Raka. You look like you bought that suit at a clearance sale." Raka didn't look at her. He stared at his reflection in the tinted window of the Maybach. "It’s a five-thousand-dollar Tom Ford, Anya. You bought it." "I bought the suit, not the confidence. Fix it. Now." Raka exhaled, his fingers trembling slightly as he toyed with the silver links. "Better?" Anya leaned closer, the scent of her Chanel No. 5 hitting him like a physical blow. She reached out, her manicured nails grazing his jaw before she roughly straightened his collar. "You’re a prop, Raka. A very expensive, very handsome prop. Remember that when we walk through those doors." "Hard to forget when you remind me every ten minutes." "Good. If you trip over your tongue or look at me with those pathetic 'help me' eyes, Artemis & Associates won't just cancel your contract. They’ll make sure you never find work as a janitor in this city. Understood?" "Crystal." The valet opened the door. The roar

The double doors of the corner office swung open with a silent, heavy precision. Raka stepped inside, his feet sinking into a charcoal-grey silk rug that felt like walking on a cloud of money. The room was a cathedral of glass and steel, dominated by a desk carved from a single block of translucent white marble. Behind it, the city of New York was a sprawling, chaotic mess, but inside this glass box, everything was silent, sterile, and controlled.Elena was standing by the window, her back to him. She didn't turn around when he entered."The suit is a Tom Ford, three seasons old," she said, her voice a cool, melodic blade. "The shoes are Crockett & Jones, but the soles are worn thin. You’ve been walking a lot because you can’t afford the Uber surcharges anymore. Your watch is a Patek Philippe, but it’s a high-quality replica because you sold the original six months ago to pay for a storage unit you’ve since abandoned. Am I close?"Raka stood his ground, his hands shoved deep into his

"Stop fidgeting with the collar, Raka. You’re going to fray the silk."Raka dropped his hands, staring at his reflection in the three-way mirror. The tuxedo was a bespoke Vera Wang, midnight blue with black grosgrain lapels. It fit him with a precision that felt like a second skin—or a straitjacket. "I feel like a prop in a high-budget horror movie, Elena," Raka said, his voice flat.Elena stepped into the frame behind him. She was wearing a structured grey suit, her hair pulled back into her signature lethal bun. She reached out and adjusted the carnation on his lapel with clinical accuracy."You *are* a prop. But you’re a million-dollar prop. Try to act like you’ve been in a villa like this before.""A rented villa in the Hamptons for a wedding that isn't legal? Yeah, I do this every Tuesday.""It’s legal enough for the public record," Elena countered, her eyes meeting his in the glass. "The paperwork we filed this morning is sufficient to satisfy the socialite gossip mill and the

The glass doors of Artemis & Associates hissed shut behind Raka, sealing out the humid roar of Manhattan. He didn't stop at the obsidian reception desk. He marched straight toward the back, his heart a frantic drum against his ribs. He pushed open the double doors to Elena’s office without knocking.Elena didn't look up from her tablet. She sat behind her marble desk, the sunlight from the floor-to-ceiling windows casting her in a cold, celestial glow."You’re four minutes early for your check-in, Raka. Punctuality is a virtue, but desperation is a scent I don't care for.""We need to talk, Elena. Now.""Sit down. Adjust your tie. You look like you’ve been running from a ghost."Raka ignored the chair. He slammed his hands onto the marble surface. "I found things, Elena. In Anya’s study. A locked drawer."Elena finally looked up. Her grey eyes were flat, devoid of surprise. "And why were you in a locked drawer, Raka? Clause 8.2 of your contract specifically forbids 'unauthorized explo

The new apartment on the Upper West Side smelled of lemon polish and expensive silence. Raka stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, staring at the toy-sized taxis crawling along Central Park West. His phone buzzed on the marble kitchen island."The view is better than the studio, isn't it?" Elena’s voice was as crisp as a fresh banknote."It’s a nicer cage, Elena. I'll give you that.""Don't get philosophical, Raka. It doesn't suit your current tax bracket. Are you dressed?""I’m in a three-piece suit eating a bowl of cereal. Why?""Because your second life begins in forty minutes. My office. Don't be late. Madam Bianca is a woman who counts seconds like they’re diamonds.""Bianca. What’s the brief on this one? Another grieving widow who needs a shoulder to cry on?""Madam Bianca doesn't cry, Raka. She consumes. She’s thirty-two, she owns a logistics empire that she inherited under... fortunate circumstances, and she’s currently facing a hostile takeover from her late husband’s family.