2025-08-08 19:50:48The rain hadn’t stopped. It drummed against the car roof as Adrian stared at the phone’s text message.
Ten million. It was an impossible number in his old life but now, it was pocket change. Still, the amount wasn’t the point. The demand was.
"This isn’t about money," Adrian said quietly.
Grayson’s eyes flicked toward him. "Correct. It’s about control. They’re setting the stage to see how you react under pressure."
"Then we give them exactly what they want?"
Grayson shook his head. "No. We give them what we want, wrapped in what they think they want." Twenty five minutes later, they were in the private vault of Orion Bank’s headquarters. The room was a cathedral of steel and shadows, the air conditioned chill biting through Adrian’s jacket.
Adrian’s chest went cold. "David’s sister," he breathed. "Emily." Grayson’s nod was almost imperceptible. "They know who matters to you."
"How?!" "They were watching you before you even knew the inheritance existed."
On the video, the masked figure stepped forward and held something up to the camera, a playing card.
The rules are simple, you win, she lives. You lose, she disappears forever. First challenge begins at midnight. Instructions will follow."
The screen went black. Adrian slammed a fist against the dash. "We’re going after her now. "Grayson’s tone was sharp. "No. You charge in blind, she dies before you get through the door. This is a controlled game. They set the terms for now."
"Why me?" Adrian asked, voice shaking with fury.
Grayson turned in his seat, his eyes hard. "Because, Mr. Cole, the people in this game don’t just want your fortune. They want to break you. To prove that no matter how high you rise, you’ll always be the boy with nothing."
Adrian felt the old humiliation flare, Bella’s laughter, Briggs’ coins, the cold smirk of strangers who thought he’d never matter. Not again. He looked out at the rain slick streets. "Then we play. And we win." Grayson studied him for a moment, then gave a slow nod. "Then the first thing you’ll need is leverage."
Grayson reached into the glove box and pulled out a thick black folder. Inside were photographs, men in expensive suits, women draped in diamonds, faces smiling for cameras but hiding secrets in their eyes.
"These are the other players," he said. "Some of them will try to recruit you. Others will try to destroy you before the game ends. And one of them… will kill without hesitation."
Adrian flipped through the photos until he froze. There, in crystal clarity, was Bella Frost. Smiling. Holding a champagne flute. Standing beside the masked figure from the video. The rain outside seemed to grow louder, harder.
"She’s in the Game," Adrian whispered.
And then the phone buzzed again, a single text: Challenge One begins in 3 hours. Bring $10 million in cash.
Two armed guards flanked the door as a vault manager, pale and sweating under Grayson’s gaze, brought out black duffel bags filled with neatly stacked bricks of cash. Adrian reached down, running his fingers over the crisp bills. "Feels unreal."
Grayson’s voice was flat. "That’s because it isn’t money to them it’s bait."
As they loaded the bags into the Aston, Adrian caught his own reflection in the polished black paint. Same face. Same eyes. But something in the way he stood shoulders back, jaw set felt different.
He wasn’t showing up to be mocked anymore. He was showing up to play.
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Chapter 15 – Blood on the Table
The spotlight burned white against the polished boardroom table, casting stark shadows across the faces frozen in shock. The chairman’s body sagged forward, his forehead resting against the mahogany surface, a crimson pool spreading beneath him.For a moment, no one moved. The world outside the glass wall seemed distant, the city lights cold and indifferent. Inside, the air was heavy with the metallic scent of blood and the faint tang of gunpowder.Adrian’s pulse was a war drum in his ears. His gaze flicked over the room, mapping movement, searching for the attacker. The assassin who had gone for him was gone vanished into the shadows.Then chaos erupted. “What the hell just happened?!” a board member shouted, his voice high with panic.“Security! Someone call security!” another yelled, fumbling with her phone. The woman with razor sharp cheekbones was already backing toward the exit. “This is a coup,” she hissed, eyes darting toward Adrian. Coup? The word struck like a blade.Adrian’
Chapter 14 – Shadows in the Boardroom
The city glimmered in the distance like a million fireflies trapped in glass. From the backseat of his new Maybach, Adrian watched the skyline blur past, but his mind was far from calm. The hum of the engine was steady, the leather seats soft, yet his chest felt as if a cold fist was tightening around it.An “emergency meeting,” the message had said. No context. No explanation. Just an urgent summons from the consortium’s board, accompanied by the consortium’s crest in gold and black. The tone had been clipped, almost hostile.Adrian knew this world well enough to understand one thing: in circles of immense power, “emergency” rarely meant good news.He drummed his fingers lightly on his knee, his reflection staring back at him from the tinted window. It was strange, this reflection wore a tailored suit worth more than he’d once earned in a year, a watch that could buy a small apartment, and yet his eyes were the same. Sharp. Searching. Suspicious.As the car pulled into the private un
Chapter 13 – Red Hands, White Lies
Rain still poured, drumming on the rooftop like a funeral march. Adrian leaned over the ledge, scanning the shadows below where Silas had fallen or vanished. No body. No splash. Nothing. Behind him, Emily stirred, letting out a soft moan.Adrian spun around and knelt by her side. Her face was pale, soaked, lips trembling. “You’re safe,” he whispered. She blinked, dazed. “What... happened?”Grayson holstered his gun, stepping back from the edge. “He’s gone. For now.” Adrian helped Emily sit up. “They said my father was part of this. Was that a lie too?”Grayson didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he reached into his coat and pulled out a small, waterproof dossier. “Your father left more than just a name behind. This... this is your inheritance.” Adrian took the folder. Inside were old photos, blueprints, and a single page titled: ‘The Twelve Trials of the Consortium’.“I thought I was already the heir,” Adrian said, confused. “You are. But not the final one. You’re the successor. Your
Chapter 12 – The Gun, The Girl, and The Game
Adrian didn’t move. The wind howled. The rain poured. Grayson’s gun was steady. So was Silas’s. Two barrels. Two lives. And one clock.Emily trembled under Silas’s grip, her cheek pressed to the muzzle of his pistol. Her eyes locked onto Adrian’s, silently pleading. Grayson stood behind Adrian, his gun aimed at the back of his head like it had been rehearsed."Put the gun down," Adrian said, without turning. "No," Grayson replied, voice firm. "Not until you choose." Adrian clenched his jaw. “You’re part of this?”“You think Silas works alone?” Grayson’s tone was almost apologetic. “This is bigger than you. Than her. Than any of us.” Silas chuckled. "He finally says something useful."The storm blurred everything, but Adrian’s mind was clearer than it had been in years. Silas. Grayson. Emily. The letters. The tests. The Game.He remembered the night in college, the night Silas vanished after a fire that killed two students. Everyone had assumed he died too. But Adrian had seen somethin
Chapter 11 – The Fall
Rain pelted the balcony, stinging Adrian’s face as he vaulted over the railing. The wind roared in his ears, drowning out Emily’s muffled scream.Silas was already halfway down the building, descending like it was second nature, boots finding invisible footholds along the slick glass exterior. Emily struggled in his grip, but every twist she made was countered with a brutal precision that told Adrian this wasn’t the first hostage Silas had taken."Let her go!" Adrian’s voice was lost to the wind.He grabbed the maintenance cable that ran along the balcony’s edge and slid down, gloves burning with friction. The thirty floors below blurred together in flashes of lightning. Silas didn’t look up but Adrian saw his head tilt just slightly, the way a predator notices another predator.Silas swung himself onto a lower balcony, smashing the sliding door with one hard kick. Adrian landed seconds later, splintering glass under his boots.The condo they’d crashed into was dark, lit only by the s
Chapter 10 – Inside the Lion’s Den
The photo on Adrian’s phone burned into his vision. Timestamp: 3 minutes ago. Taken from inside his penthouse. Emily was asleep on the couch in the shot, head resting on the armrest, blanket tucked neatly under her chin. But that wasn’t what made Adrian’s pulse spike.It was the figure standing behind her. A tall, shadowed silhouette, leaning just close enough that if he’d been there in person, Adrian could’ve heard the whisper in Emily’s ear."Grayson!" Adrian barked, voice edged with urgency.The older man moved instantly, crossing the room to stand at his side. His eyes flicked to the phone, then to the couch. Emily was still there. Still asleep. The blanket was exactly as in the picture. Except now there was no one standing over her."Stay here," Grayson said sharply, already moving toward the kitchen with the smooth, silent steps of someone who’d done this a thousand times before.Adrian didn’t wait. He swept the balcony doors first locked. Windows sealed. The entire perimeter wa
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