THE KING’S VESTIGE

Chapter 9

Kade kissed Silisa knowing exactly who her mother was, hating himself for needing her.

Two weeks had passed since their first meeting at the Harbor Club. He spent every day verifying her information and testing her loyalty. So far, everything she gave him was accurate.

The server location was real. Security schedules were updated weekly. Financial records showed decades of money laundering, human trafficking, and corruption so deep it made his stomach turn.

Through it all, Silisa kept showing up with more information, more access, and more reasons for him to trust her.

They met in different locations every time—coffee shops, parks, and hotel lobbies. Always public spaces, always crowded, always somewhere Celessa's people couldn't listen in without being obvious.

Tonight they were in a restaurant on the waterfront. Silisa sat across from him wearing a black dress that probably cost more than most people's cars. Kade tried not to notice how beautiful she was.

"You're distracted." She took a sip of wine. "What's wrong?"

"Trying to figure out your angle." Kade pushed his food around his plate. "Nobody betrays their own mother without a reason. Freedom isn't enough of a reason for what you're risking."

"You don't think freedom is worth risking everything?" She set down her glass. "You ran away from your father and from Celessa when you were twelve. You spent ten years becoming strong enough to come back and fight them. That's not about freedom?"

"That's about survival."

"Same thing." She leaned back in her chair. "You survived by leaving. I'm trying to survive by helping you destroy the thing that's been suffocating me my entire life. We're not that different."

Kade wanted to believe her. He wanted to think that maybe someone from the Thorne family could actually be genuine, honest, and trustworthy. But he had learned during the war that wanting something didn't make it true.

After dinner, they walked along the waterfront as city lights reflected off the water. For a moment, Kade could almost forget why he was here.

She reached out and touched his arm. "Can I tell you something?"

"What?"

"I think I'm falling for you." She said it quietly, like she was admitting something shameful. "I know I shouldn't. I know you're using me to get to my mother. I know you probably see me as just another Thorne. But I can't help it. You're the first person I've ever met who isn't afraid of her, who looks at this empire she built and sees something that can be destroyed instead of something that has to be obeyed."

Kade knew he should step back, should remind her that this was business and nothing more, should maintain the distance he'd been keeping since they started working together. Instead, he kissed her.

It was stupid and reckless, exactly the kind of mistake that got people killed, but in that moment he didn't care. He'd spent ten years being careful and controlled. Maybe he was tired of it.

She kissed him back, her hands moving to his shoulders. He could feel her heart racing. He knew this was wrong on about fifteen different levels, but he couldn't make himself stop.

When they finally pulled apart, she was breathing hard and looking at him like she couldn't quite believe what just happened.

"That was..." she started.

"A mistake." Kade stepped back. "I shouldn't have done that."

"Why not?" She moved closer again. "Because you don't trust me? Because you think I'm going to betray you? Or because you actually feel something, and that scares you?"

All three reasons were true, but he didn't say any of them.

"I need to go." He turned and started walking away.

"Kade, wait." She grabbed his arm. "I can help you get closer to Thorne Manor. I can get you inside without triggering any alarms and give you access to places even the security teams don't know about. But you have to let me in. You have to stop treating me like I'm the enemy."

He looked at her and saw genuine emotion in her eyes. He hated how much he wanted to believe it was real.

"Tomorrow night." He pulled his arm free gently. "There's a charity gala at the manor. Get me an invitation, and we'll talk about the next step."

"I can do that." She smiled. "Thank you for trusting me."

"I don't trust you," he said as kindly as he could. "But I'm willing to use you. For now, that's enough."

Kade left her standing on the waterfront and walked back to his hotel, trying not to think about how her lips felt or how her eyes looked when she said she was falling for him.

Instead, he focused on the plan. The gala was the perfect opportunity to scout Thorne Manor from the inside, to see the layout, security, and people who worked there. If Silisa was actually working against him, this would be where she'd spring the trap.

Either way, tomorrow night would give him the answers he needed.

His phone buzzed with a message from Lyric: *Are you okay? You haven't called in three days.*

He typed back: *I'm fine. Just busy. How's the new location?*

*Better. Safer. But I'm worried about you. This whole plan sounds dangerous.*

*Everything worth doing is dangerous. Go to sleep. I'll call you tomorrow.*

She sent back a heart emoji. Kade put his phone away, sat on the edge of the bed, and stared at the wall.

The next morning, he received a message with a digital invitation to the Thorne Manor charity gala and a note that said: *Come as yourself. It's time everyone knew who you really are.*

He stared at the message for a long time, trying to decide if this was brilliant or suicidal. Then he got dressed and went to meet his team. Either way, he was going to that gala, and he was going to find out exactly what Celessa Thorne had been hiding.

His phone buzzed one more time with a message from an unknown number: *Your mother wasn't just wealthy. She was the founder. Check the sealed file marked Elena.*

Kade opened his laptop and searched through every database he had access to. Finally, he found a file buried in old government records with his mother's name on it.

Inside were documents about a woman named Elena who built the Thorne Network twenty-five years ago, who created the system that still controlled City B, and who'd been erased from history when someone staged a coup.

He sat there reading and rereading the documents, feeling his entire understanding of everything shift.

His mother hadn't been a victim. She'd been the architect.