Alaric’s knuckles had been cleaned, but the anger in his chest still throbbed—far hotter than any physical wound.One more day, he thought, staring at the slowly ticking wall clock.Exactly at midnight, a soft knock sounded on his wooden door. It wasn’t hesitant, but rhythmic—a code he recognized as Maia’s. Alaric stood and unlocked the door.Maia stepped inside with graceful ease. She was no longer wearing her stiff gray maid uniform. Now, she was dressed only in a thin black silk night robe that wrapped around her athletic figure. Her hair, usually tied neatly, now flowed freely over her shoulders.“The main corridor doors have been secured, Master. Dominic is passed out drunk in his study,” Maia reported in a low, husky voice.She knelt in front of Alaric, placing a digital tablet on his lap. “These are the details of the Thorne family’s hidden assets in Manhattan, ready to be reactivated under your name tomorrow morning. Their value reaches three billion dollars.”Alaric didn’t lo

The scene outside Hotel Pierre was in complete chaos. Police sirens wailed, slicing through the cold Manhattan night. Dominic Vance was dragged out in handcuffs, his face ruined, tears soaking his expensive tuxedo. The invited guests could only watch with disgust, as if he were a plague to be avoided.Alaric Thorne stood beside his new black limousine—a Rolls-Royce Ghost prepared by Maia. He didn’t even glance at Dominic. To him, the man was already dead.“Alaric! Wait!”The shrill cry made Alaric pause. Seraphina Vance ran toward him, her luxurious golden gown dragging across the asphalt, her makeup slightly smeared by cold sweat. She looked like a queen who had just lost her kingdom.Maia immediately stepped forward to block her, but Alaric raised his hand, signaling her to let it happen.“Alaric… please,” Seraphina panted, her eyes glossy as she looked at the man she once considered nothing more than a lowly servant. “I didn’t know anything about Dominic’s corruption. I swear! He f

The headquarters of Vance Global had now transformed into Alaric Thorne’s command center. Behind the massive mahogany desk that once belonged to Dominic, Alaric sat calmly, gazing at the Manhattan skyline through bulletproof glass. On the monitor before him, the stock charts of Julian Thorne’s company were in free fall.Alaric sipped his bitter black coffee. “How is he reacting, Maia?”Maia stood in the corner of the room, her fingers dancing over the keyboard of her encrypted laptop. “Julian is panicking, Master. He just lost his logistics contract at the East Port. He’s contacting all his connections, but not a single one dares to pick up. They know who’s behind this attack.”“Good. Let him feel suffocated,” Alaric said coldly. “And what about Evelyn?”“She’s waiting outside. Completely broken, though she still hopes you’ll show her mercy.” Maia glanced toward the door with a disdainful look. “She just received a message from Julian. He asked her to find out who the new owner of Van

The mercenary attack on Thorne Estate was suppressed in less than thirty minutes. Maia and the Thorne shadow unit moved like ghosts, neutralizing enemies one by one in the darkness of the corridors. Seraphina Vance, who had been screaming hysterically with a detonator in her hand, now lay collapsed on the floor of Alaric’s soundproof private study.The detonator turned out to be fake. Seraphina had lost everything and gone mad—this was her final attempt to gain the attention of the man she once looked down on.Alaric sat in his chair, staring at the woman before him with an icy gaze. Seraphina looked disheveled; her gold dress was torn in several places, her blonde hair tangled, her breathing uneven from both fear and… misplaced desire.“You wanted to blow me up, Seraphina?” Alaric asked, his voice low and threatening. “Or did you just want to get back into my room?”Seraphina crawled closer, tears streaking down her flushed cheeks. “Alaric… you don’t understand. Dominic was a monster

The smell of gunpowder and the metallic scent of blood mixed with the damp aroma of soaked wool carpeting inside The Vault’s VVIP room. A shattered massive aquarium had turned the casino floor into a deadly glass swamp. Water pooled ankle-deep, dragging along crystal shards and the bodies of unfortunate guards.Alaric Thorne stood upright in the middle of the chaos. His breathing was steady, as if the distant sirens and screams were nothing more than background noise. In front of him, Julian Thorne crawled backward, trying to escape his brother—who now looked like something out of hell.“Wait, Alaric! We can talk!” Julian shouted, his voice hoarse with fear. “The Italian mafia—they came to me! I was only trying to protect Father’s company!”Alaric didn’t respond. He stepped forward, each footstep splashing through the water like a death knell. With one swift motion, he grabbed Julian by the throat and lifted him. Julian’s weight meant nothing against the strength Alaric had kept hidde