"Let the Taiyang Conference begin!" Soon Han called out, standing on the podium of the Golden Ballroom.Waves of applause exploded across the hall. Most of the gathered guests seemed to look forward to the upcoming days. Some came here looking for investors or wealthy clients, while others sought an opportunity to multiply the billions of dollars already gathered in their accounts. Certainly, not everyone could participate in Soon Han's event. Those who wanted to be here had to pay the so-called entrance fee, a round sum of a million dollars per person. Paying two million for staying three days at the hotel didn't mean much to Aiden, but it surely made my head spin when I learned about it…I looked around and saw glamorously dressed people with excitement painted all over their faces. Those who sat at our table weren't different. Mr. and Mrs. Bessette came here hoping to extend their portfolio of investments. Ms. Maya Laskar and her soon-to-be wife, Ms. Larisa Sardar, were going to lo
I froze, staring at the terrifying man in front of me. I should have forced my feet to move, but my eyes were desperate to register as many details as possible, as if I needed proof that he existed. His black hair was slickly combed up, unlike the slightly ruffled waves I recalled in the glimpses of my memory. His complexion seemed to have a lighter shade, but the eyes were exactly like the image engraved in my mind. The emotional void filling the dark irises scared the hell out of me.The black-haired man smoothed the lapels of his jacket and corrected his black tie. Then he glanced at Dominique, who looked like he had stopped breathing. Fear tightened his jaw, and his fisted hands began to tremble."Why are you doing this? You don't need my help," Dominique strained through his teeth.The black-haired man huffed a chuckle. "It's more fun this way. Besides, you wanted revenge. This is your chance."Dominique shook his head. "Not this way. I'm not like you."The black-haired man moved
I couldn't breathe. My heart thundered against my ribcage, pumping blood that turned into raw flames, burning my insides. The constant, single, high-pitched note filled my ears, piercing my brain like a wild scream, one able to tear every nerve apart. Panic.It rose inside me and now scratched the surface, but I had to stop this attack. It was the worst time and place to show my weakness. Aiden's fingers formed a tighter grip on my waist. "Charlie, are you all right?" he asked softly.I clenched my fists and forced air into my lungs. I couldn't allow myself to have a breakdown in front of a potential enemy. I glanced at Landon and saw an almost impeccable mask of concern plastered on his face. What kind of freaking game was he playing?I sucked in another breath and held it until the scorching flames inside me faded. "I'm OK," I said, stretching my lips into a faint smile. "It must be jetlag."Landon chuckled. "Yeah, jetlag can be a real bitch."All the question marks circling around
I couldn't sleep. For the first time, even hearing Aiden's heartbeat and feeling the warmth of his skin were unable to soothe my inner storm. Everything that lay untold between me and Aiden clamped my mouth shut, ending the whole Landon-problem explanation with the fact that it must have been someone else in that hotel room when I was raped. And I would happily let it all go if someone told me why the man with the scar and Landon were so much alike. Not to mention that I could almost sense that Landon knew me, or rather, knew things about me. How? I didn't have a clue. It was in the way he looked at me, as if he were trying to tell me that he knew my secrets and that my single false move would cause him to reveal everything I wanted to keep hidden.The annoying voice in my head kept telling me that I should have predicted this. The weight of my lies grew, slowly crushing every inch of me. If there were no secrets between us, I could have gotten to the truth about Landon. I could have
My eyes zeroed in on the gun held by Dominique Martel. The barrel was pointed at my chest, Dominique's finger on the trigger. Ignoring my loudly pounding heart, fast and shallow breaths, and trembling body, I raised my eyes to face him. He looked just as impeccable as all the other times I had seen him. His blond hair was neatly combed, his gray suit perfectly tailored and smoothed, his tie straight. If it hadn't been for the gun he held, I would have assumed he was here to discuss business."Dominique," I managed, struggling to keep my voice even. "What are you doing?"Barely restraining my panic not to burst out, I studied him. His cold blue eyes sparked with excitement. His mouth cracked into a dark grin while the muscles of his jaw tensed. Tearing my gaze from him, I quickly glanced around the room. What I saw caused my breath to catch in my throat. A body, either unconscious or dead, was lying under the conference table. I could see only one booted leg with pants, resembling thos
AIDENAll for nothing. I walked out of another meeting without a single clue who was after our lives. I entered our suite only to find that Charlie was gone. She probably went for her third meeting with someone terrifyingly boring. I slumped my ass on the sofa and dragged my fingers through my face as frustration grew within me. I hated that feeling, this sickening unknowing, when someone was after me, after her."Sorry, man. I'm not risking my life to help you," said a guy whom I once saved from bankruptcy. He had good connections with the underground and kept collecting information about the recent conflicts. He knew who was after me, or at least he assumed who it was, but he kept his fucking mouth shut. I liked to tell myself that I was nothing like those shitheads I had been dealing with, but that didn't mean that I hadn't thought of resorting to violence and beating the truth out of him. Unfortunately, there were too many guards around for it to go unnoticed.Sighing, I went to t
CHARLIEHow long had it been? An hour? Longer than that? I couldn't tell because I constantly crawled through the tunnels without stopping. I was too scared to take a break, and I sure as hell needed one. My hands and feet were sweaty. My head was spinning from spending too much time in a dark and tiny space. Not to mention that I was bleeding. I wasn't certain how it happened, but I cut my foot when I was taking a turn and sliding through the narrow gate. To avoid leaving tracks, I tore my dress, shortening it by a few inches. Then I used the fabric to wrap it around the cut. Perfect, just freaking perfect. With my dress torn, shoeless feet, and one foot wrapped up with a black cloth, there was no way I could sneak to our suite unnoticed once I got out of those damn tunnels.My thoughts drifted to Aiden. Did he come back from his meeting? How long was it going to take him to find out that something had happened to me? Would he start looking for me? Was he trying to find me… now? God,
AIDENTwo Hours Earlier"There!" yelled one of Han's technicians monitoring the screens. "The cameras went out on the thirty-ninth floor." He pointed at the one black monitor in the row of countless others showing live footage from every corner of the hotel. Those cameras might have been turned off by those who were after Charlie, but I couldn't let myself rush there without making sure she wasn't in a completely different part of the hotel."Have you checked the thermal sensors in the ventilation systems?" I asked, stepping closer and glancing between him and three other technicians sitting in the room."Yes," another one answered, turning away from the computer screen and giving me a wry smile. "There's no sign of anyone in the parts of the tunnels we have access to."My irritation flared, and I hardly resisted punching something… or someone. "Are there parts you don't have access to?" I strained through my tightly clenched teeth.The tech guy cleared his throat. "Well, we currently