SophiaNathan thinks he’s won.He thinks that because he’s pulled every string, every dirty trick, every deception, that I’m going to crumble. That I’ll break under the weight of his manufactured evidence.He doesn’t realize I don’t break.I burn.And right now, I’m about to set his entire world on fire.Alex leans against the interrogation room wall, his face sharp with thought. “Bellion is already working on tracing the forgeries. He says the signatures look authentic, but they were likely created using AI-generated overlays. Whoever did this is good. Very good.”I exhale, pressing my fingertips into my temples. “Nathan wouldn’t have left room for mistakes unless he thought he was untouchable. There’s a flaw in his plan. We just need to find it.”Alex smirks, dark and dangerous. “I already did.”My head snaps up. “What?”He pushes off the wall, tossing a folder onto the metal table. “Nathan was meticulous. But he’s arrogant. He assumed we wouldn’t have access to certain databases. B
SophiaPower is a delicate thing.Nathan thought he had it. Thought he could twist the world, bend it to his will. He built his empire on deception, control, and fear.But fear only works if your enemy doesn’t fight back.And right now, I’m not just fighting back. I’m taking everything.I sit in Alex’s penthouse, watching the news coverage. The fallout is worse than even I predicted. Nathan is drowning. His offshore accounts, the shell corporations, the bribes—all of it is unraveling under the scrutiny of the federal investigation I helped set in motion.He wanted to ruin me. Instead, he’s watching his empire burn.Alex enters the room, phone in hand. His expression is unreadable, but there’s an edge to his stance. A readiness for war.“He’s panicking,” Alex says. “Bellion confirmed it. Nathan called an emergency meeting with his legal team an hour ago. He’s scrambling for options.”I smirk. “Let him scramble.”Alex’s eyes darken with something sharp, something dangerous. He steps clo
SophiaThe Hamptons estate looms before us, dark and silent, like the eye of a storm.Nathan is inside. Waiting.I feel it in the stillness, in the heavy weight of the night air pressing down on us. There’s no movement from the windows, no sign of guards. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t there.Alex steps closer, his voice low. “Last chance to change your mind.”I smirk, adjusting the cuff of my coat. “You know me better than that.”His lips twitch, but there’s no humor in his expression. Just sharp focus, a readiness for whatever waits beyond that door.We move.The driveway is lined with sleek black cars, engines off, their occupants nowhere in sight. Nathan’s remaining allies. He’s gathering what’s left of his empire, trying to salvage what he can before it all collapses.Good.Let them all be here to witness the moment their king falls.Alex and I reach the entrance. The doors are unlocked.Of course they are.Nathan isn’t hiding.He wants us inside.I push the doors open, steppi
SophiaThe fire blazes behind us, consuming Nathan’s estate in roaring waves of destruction. The night sky is painted in hues of orange and black, and the air is thick with the acrid scent of burning wood and gasoline.Nathan is gone.Again.I brace my hands against the hood of Alex’s car, my pulse a relentless drumbeat in my ears. Every part of me is taut, my skin prickling with the aftershock of the explosion.Bellion is on the phone, his voice clipped and urgent. “I need an immediate sweep of the surrounding roads. Carter’s running. I want every airport, every private airstrip on lockdown—”I tune him out.Alex steps closer, his eyes scanning me. “You’re shaking.”I let out a slow breath, willing the adrenaline coursing through my veins to settle. “I’m fine.”It’s a lie.Because this was supposed to be the final move.Nathan wasn’t meant to walk away from this.Alex watches me for a beat before nodding toward the wreckage. “He planned the explosion. That means he had an exit strate
SophiaThe moment I hear Chloe’s name, a slow, insidious rage curls in my chest.I should have known.I should have expected it.Nathan Carter doesn’t believe in loyalty, only leverage. And Chloe? She’s always been desperate for power, even if it meant crawling back to the man who discarded her like a broken chess piece.I stare at the surveillance reports spread across Alex’s desk, my pulse steady despite the storm building inside me. “How sure are we that she’s working with him?”Bellion, ever the composed one, clears his throat. “We intercepted a burner phone call between them. The encryption was layered, but the message was clear—Chloe is in.”Alex, standing at my side, exhales sharply. “She doesn’t learn, does she?”No. She doesn’t.Chloe had aligned herself with Nathan once before, believing she was untouchable. She thought she could betray me, humiliate me, and still land on her feet.This time, I won’t be so forgiving.Alex watches me closely. “What’s the move?”I inhale, my g
SophiaThe air in the private dining room hums with quiet tension. Chloe sits across from me, sipping her wine like a woman who has already won.I let her believe it.She thinks she’s fooling me, thinks I’ve welcomed her back into Carter Industries with open arms. But I know exactly who she is. What she is.A traitor.And traitors have no place at my table.The waiter pours another glass of champagne, but I barely acknowledge him. My focus remains on Chloe—her posture, the careful way she controls her expressions, the calculated confidence in her smile.She’s playing a role.I just don’t know whose script she’s following yet.“So,” she says lightly, swirling her wine as if she isn’t sitting across from the woman whose life she tried to destroy, “what exactly is my role in all this, Sophia?”I smile, setting my glass down with a quiet clink. “You’ll handle client acquisitions. Secure new partnerships. Rebuild the trust Nathan destroyed.”Chloe raises a brow, amusement flickering across
SophiaThe morning light filters through the high-rise windows of my office, golden and deceptive. I sit at my desk, fingers curled around the handle of my coffee cup, but my mind is far from the rhythmic ticking of the clock on the wall.Chloe took the bait.She thinks she’s integrating herself back into Carter Industries. She thinks she’s secured a foothold.I let her believe it.But Bellion’s latest report confirms my suspicions—she’s making small, calculated financial moves. At first glance, they seem harmless, but when you know what to look for?It’s a slow, methodical betrayal.Across from me, Alex leans against the edge of my desk, flipping through a copy of the same report. His sharp golden-brown eyes flick upward, meeting mine. “She’s bold.”“Too bold,” I murmur, setting my cup down. “She wants us to see her making these moves.”Bellion clears his throat from where he stands near the bookshelf. “Which means she either thinks we’re foolish or—”“She’s baiting us,” Alex finishe
SophiaThe crisp morning air does nothing to cool the slow-burning fire inside me.Chloe is slipping.Bellion confirmed it late last night—she accessed the files I fed her, but she hesitated before making her next move.She’s smart enough to recognize a trap.But not smart enough to avoid stepping into one.I take a sip of my coffee, the bitter taste grounding me as I stand at the floor-to-ceiling windows of my penthouse. Below, the city hums with early morning life, people moving like pieces on a chessboard.Chloe thinks she’s maneuvering me.Nathan thinks he’s controlling her.But the truth?They’re both already cornered.I turn when I hear the quiet rustle of movement behind me. Alex stands in the doorway, a folder in hand, his sharp gaze assessing me.“You’re quiet,” he remarks, stepping inside.I arch a brow. “Do you prefer when I monologue my revenge plans aloud?”His lips twitch, but his eyes remain serious. “Bellion sent his update.”I reach for the folder, flipping it open. M
SophiaThe car ride back to Bellion’s safe house was suffocating. Not because of the space, but because of Chloe. She sat there, shoulders hunched, eyes downcast, the weight of her own betrayal pressing against her like chains. She wasn’t speaking, and for once, I didn’t feel the need to pull words from her.Because I didn’t trust a damn thing she had to say.Alex drove with calculated ease, his hands tight on the steering wheel, his golden-brown eyes flicking toward the rearview mirror every few seconds to check for a tail. We all knew Nathan wouldn’t just let this go. He never did.“We should have killed him,” Alex muttered, breaking the silence.Bellion, who had been silent beside me, tilted his head slightly. “It’s never that simple with men like Nathan.”I exhaled sharply. “It will be. Because I’m going to make sure of it.”Chloe shifted beside me, flinching slightly, as if she had something to say but was too afraid to speak it.Good.She should be afraid.Because if she thought
SophiaThe sound of Chloe’s ragged breathing filled the back seat of Alex’s car as we sped through the empty streets. She was barely holding herself together, her fingers curled into the fabric of her dress like she could ground herself through sheer force of will. She had been quiet since we left Nathan’s mansion, too quiet. But I wasn’t in the mood to coax words out of her.She had made her choices. And now, she was facing the consequences.Alex glanced at me from the driver’s seat, his expression unreadable. “She needs medical attention,” he said, voice low but firm.“She needs to start talking,” I countered, turning in my seat to face her. “Why did Nathan take you?”Chloe swallowed hard, staring at the passing streetlights like they held the answers. “He said I was a liability,” she whispered. “That I was an unfinished problem that needed to be taken care of.”A sharp pulse of satisfaction ran through me. So, Nathan wasn’t invincible after all. If he was eliminating liabilities, i
SophiaI leaned against the city skyline from the penthouse window, my hand clenched around the stem of a wine glass. The amber liquid inside didn't much ripple, but my mind was far from still. The battle between Nathan and me had grown more powerful than business, more powerful than revenge. It was personal now.Bellion's voice echoed in my head. "Chloe's been exposed. Nathan hasn't moved yet."That was the problem.Nathan never remained still.I looked over at Alex, who was sitting on the couch, watching me. His suit jacket draped over the arm of the couch, his white shirt sleeves rolled up as he sipped a drink. He was just as tired as I was."He's plotting something," I said finally.Alex sighed. "Of course, he is."I set my glass on the table and folded my arms. "Then why do I get the feeling that we're still one step behind?"Alex stared at me with all seriousness. "Because Nathan is most dangerous when he is quiet. He is letting the world destroy Chloe first before he moves."I
SophiaI stood in the doorway of my office, looking out over the city I had fought so long to reclaim. The skyline burned gold in the early evening light, the glass towers creating the illusion of tranquility. But inside me, inside this war I was waging, it was anything but peaceful.Nathan had begun it, setting fire to the orphanage, and I had retaliated. A move for a move. A game of burn and destroy.But now we were past retaliating.This was no longer a battle.It was a reckoning.A gentle knock at the door snapped me out of my trance. Bellion entered, his face as serene as ever, but his eyes sharp. "It's done."I turned to face him, my fists curled around the edge of my desk. "And?"Bellion gave me a black leather folder. "The case is airtight. Offshore accounts. Illegal arms dealings. Bribes. This—" He tapped the folder. "—is what takes Nathan Carter down."I exhaled slowly, heart rate consistent. "Then we run it."Bellion hesitated, and that was so out of character that I notice
SophiaThe orphanage retained the scent of smoke. It clung to the walls, to the furniture, to the air that I inhaled, like a reminder of what had happened.I stood in the remains of what had been the children's library, my fists clenched at my hips. The bookshelves were burnt half-way, some scattered on the floor, their cracked and blackened spines gleaming. Ash swirled in the sun through the shattered windows, coating the desecrated remains of the world I'd built for them.For them.And Nathan had laid waste to it.I gasped hard through my nose, trying to suppress the anger raging hotter than the fire that had nearly consumed this structure.Behind me, Mrs. Peterson crossed her arms, her voice trembling with barely contained rage. "They could have died, Sophia. If we hadn't smelled the smoke in time..." Her voice broke. She took a shuddering breath, fighting to continue. "Whoever did this wanted to make a point. And we both know who that is."I already did.I turned around, my face c
SophiaI barely slept.Chloe's voice lingered in my mind like a dirge. Not the threat, but the words. Not the implication—that it was going to happen. But the finality of it."Tyler's going to steal something from you. This time, it's personal."She'd smiled when she spoke. Not with menace—but at last.And that frightened me.I sat on the edge of the bed, my fingers tapping a restless rhythm against my knee. The city outside the hotel window was already awake, the skyline burning with streaks of early morning light.Alex remained sleeping on the couch, his shirt unlatched at the collar, his face serene in a way that did not usually happen when he was awake. He had remained sitting with me for the majority of the night, observing, waiting—aware I would never reveal to him what was really bothering me.Because I had no idea how to tell him.For the first time since this war began, I wasn't sure I was prepared for what lay ahead.Nathan's always played a game of power, a game of dominati
SophiaCity lights streaked across the car window, neon smudges against the black ink of night. The hum of the engine filled the silence between us, thick with all we had not said and tension that refused to disperse.Nathan had lost.But why did it seem like we were still caught up in his game?I curled my fingers around the detonator, its smooth edges cold in my hand. Its power should have been satisfying. The way Nathan's smirk had faltered, the way his shoulders had stiffened when he'd realized I'd outmaneuvered him.But his parting words gave me hesitation."You think you've won?"Alex was beside me, his form coiled in repressed anger, his amber eyes fixed ahead. His knuckles were white on his knee, his fingers twitching as though he was struggling not to pull a gun on the air itself.I exhaled slowly. "Say it."His head moved slightly, his jaw tight. "Say what?""That you think I should have let you kill him."Alex's mouth opened, then closed again. He inhaled through his nostri
SophiaThe moment the countdown stopped, the air in the warehouse shifted. Silence stretched, thick and unyielding, as if the universe itself had paused, waiting to see what would happen next.Nathan stood motionless, his smirk still lingering, but something flickered in his eyes—something close to frustration. He hadn’t planned for this. He hadn’t expected me to win.For the first time in this game we'd played, I saw the cracks in his perfect control.Alex still had the gun pressed to Nathan's temple, his breath steady, his grip tight. I could see the math in his eyes—whether killing Nathan here, now, would subtract from or add to our problems.I already knew the answer.It wouldn't be enough.It had taken Nathan years to construct his empire, ringing the city with his power like an impenetrable fist. Assassinating him would only make him a martyr to the citizens who still remained faithful to him.We had to dismantle him piece by piece.Destroy him in a way he could never recover fr
SophiaNathan’s smirk tightens as his finger presses down on the detonator.The blinking red lights surrounding the warehouse pulse in unison, their glow reflecting in his cold, calculating eyes.He’s baiting us.Nathan Carter doesn’t set off explosives without an audience.And we’re the ones playing right into his hands.Alex stiffens beside me, his gun steady in his grip. His muscles are taut, his stance predatory. He’s waiting for the right moment to strike. But I know Nathan better than that.Nathan isn’t reckless.He doesn’t bluff.And right now, the only thing keeping us alive is the fact that he still wants something.Nathan tilts his head slightly, amusement flickering across his face. “You seem awfully calm for someone about to watch everything they love burn.”I don’t rise to the bait.Because that’s exactly what he wants.I take a slow step forward. “If you were going to kill us, you would have done it already.”His fingers flex around the detonator, but his smirk doesn’t f