Chapter Twenty-Nine

Big Tom could barely believe what had just transpired. Sasha Brooks, the polished, seemingly delicate woman, had pulled off a plan that succeeded and earned his respect. As they drove back to the safe house silently, the gravity of what they had done weighed heavily on him. He had underestimated her, just as everyone else in their world likely would. But now, that polished exterior masked a darkness that rivaled their own. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, respect mingling with a newfound caution.

"You're one of us now," he said quietly, his voice cutting through the tension in the air.

Sasha nodded, though her heart pounded furiously in her chest. She had crossed a line she never thought she would, all for Ethan. But it wasn't just for him—it was for her. The Sasha Brooks who had entered that club hours ago was gone. In her place was Nyx, a woman who had taken a life and felt the change ripple through her very being. It was like a hardening of her soul, a steeling of her