"My mother is right about this."While Adrian stood there in silence, Camille cleared her throat beside him, her tone dripping with self-importance. "If I show up at the Marshal's Return Gala, I'll have earned myself a real place among Goldhaven's old families. Who knows how many young heirs will be lining up to court my favor after that. Asking you for another fifty thousand on top of the betrothal gift is practically a bargain.""Camille, can we just get married first? The guests outside have been waiting."Adrian's patience was wearing thin. "Tomorrow. Give me until tomorrow and I'll get you whatever you want. Fifty thousand, five hundred thousand, it doesn't matter.""Don't try that with us. Do you think the Ashfords are stupid?"Deborah cut in with a cold snort."Either you pay, or there's no wedding."Camille didn't so much as blink. "Those are your only two options. Figure it out."Adrian was still wrestling with whether to reveal who he really was when a gentle voice cut throu

"Camille, please, have mercy. Ask your mother to operate on Gordon!"Lorraine sobbed, her hand clawing at Natalie's sleeve. "Natalie, say something, quick!"The whole mess traced back to the department head election, where Deborah and Gordon had been rival candidates. They had never gotten along, trading barbs and maneuvering against each other for years, and the wedding scandal had only widened the rift. By now the Sinclair family and the Ashford family were practically at war. Deborah flatly refused to touch Gordon's case, claiming she had surgery scheduled, though everyone knew what that excuse meant.Gordon's condition could not wait. A transfer to another hospital was out of the question given the time it would cost. With no other option, the Sinclair women had swallowed their pride and come to beg the one other thoracic surgery expert in reach, the very woman who despised their family, to save his life."Camille, this is my fault. None of it has anything to do with my father."N

In a lavish bedroom, Julian had just finished his fun for the evening and was leaning back against the headboard, cigarette in hand, when the phone beside him buzzed to life."Hello? Natalie."He picked up, and only then did it occur to him that he'd been so absorbed in his own pleasure that he had forgotten to arrange Gordon's surgery. A flicker of guilt crossed his face."Julian, did you call Dr. Finch?" Natalie's voice came through the line."Uh... yeah, of course I called him." Julian blinked, the lie sliding smoothly off his tongue. "Thing is, the old man's out of town for some conference, can't get back anytime soon. I'm already working on lining up another specialist for you guys...""What did you just say?"Before he could finish, Natalie's furious voice cut him off. "Out of town for a conference? Julian, you liar! Dr. Finch is standing right here with us. You never called him at all, did you?""What?"Caught off guard by how fast the lie unraveled, Julian swallowed hard. "Tha

Night lay heavy and still, like water settling into silence.On the wall, the clock ticked steadily toward midnight.In the darkness of the room, Adrian sat quietly on the sofa, waiting for the hour to strike.The chime came sharp and sudden. The moment the hands met at twelve, the phone resting on the coffee table erupted into life, buzzing and chiming without pause.Emails, texts, calls, an avalanche of them. Among the senders were men who held real power, tycoons who ruled whole sectors of business, even underworld bosses whose names alone could silence a room.Some congratulated Marshal Vance on his return. Some fawned, hoping to curry favor first. Others begged, offering their family fortunes if only the Needle Master would cure them. The variety was almost comical.Adrian scrolled past all of it without interest.Then one message, unremarkable at a glance, caught his eye, and he stopped.It was from Sterling Hale, the richest man in Goldhaven. "Marshal, all assets have been arra