Dorian had always been timid, never having faced real hardships. The thought of spending the rest of his life in jail was unbearable. "This is all because of your greed," he spat, his voice trembling with resentment. "You and your obsession with the Grisham family—you always thought they were better than us. That's why you were so desperate to outdo them."His eyes burned with anger as he continued, "You were beyond saving from the start, yet you still dragged me and Laura down with you. Mom, you can't be this selfish."Magdalene staggered, nearly collapsing from the sheer weight of his words. Rage and betrayal clawed at her chest, but before she could succumb, Aria intervened, keeping her upright. Magdalene had to hear everything."Aria," Dorian pressed on, his desperation mounting. "You don't know half of what my mother has done. It's about Fiona. I know everything. You'll want to hear this."He had never been this frantic before. He was willing to reveal any secret if it meant
Dorian furrowed his brows, lost in thought. "There was someone… I think he was a low-level official handling Ludwiten's economy at the time.""Take a look. Is it him?" Aria slid her phone across the table, revealing a picture. Dorian immediately nodded. "That's him, but why does he look younger? He doesn't seem like the timid man I remember.""Power changes people," Aria said knowingly. "It's understandable you don't recognize him. But look," she said, pointing to the webpage with a smile. "Do you recognize him?"The man in the photo wore glasses and a suit, exuding an air of authority. Something about him felt eerily familiar.Dorian paused for a moment. "H-He is…""He's the third-in-command of the city, Amos Lune." Aria's gaze flicked between the two images. "It's indeed hard to believe. With a simple name change, he's a completely different person. But someone must have worked hard to push a minor official this high."Dorian had never considered how deep the web of influence
Aria turned to leave without hesitation. She couldn't afford to linger. Dorian's words had been recorded. Sharing them with her uncles wouldn't violate any rules—it would clear up past misunderstandings.Just as she pushed the door open, Laura's voice rang out."Aria, I swear, I knew nothing about your mother! You wouldn't want Jett to have a mother with a criminal record, would you? I never meant to harm the Grisham family. Please, help me."Aria halted, but her voice was cold. "Help you? Uncle Eamon ignored your scheming for Jett's sake the first time. When you set your sights on the Grisham Group's shares, he still chose to let it go. And yet, what did you do?"You leaked information. You framed Uncle Eamon for betraying you."She despised women like Laura—greedy and manipulative. Worse, Laura had destroyed the marriage Eamon should have had.Because of her, Eamon had been forced into marriage at an age when he should have been free to live his life.Aria had never understo
Amos didn't want Aria to stay in Ludwiten, but she had no intention of leaving just yet. The case of the woman who jumped off the building might have been closed legally, but not in Aria's eyes. The lack of an official report didn't mean the incident was simple. Something was off.Nocturne's location was too strategic, and Aria was certain there was more hidden inside the bar—something she hadn't uncovered yet.And where was the Wagner family? They had disappeared the moment she arrived in Ludwiten. She couldn't shake the unease creeping in. She needed to find Yonah.Once she secured the key information she was after, she immediately instructed her subordinates to investigate how Amos had managed to rise to power so quickly.Exposing the mastermind behind him required careful strategy. Aria knew they were calculated and composed, considering they had remained silent even after the downfall of the Draycott and Fitzroy families.To the mastermind, those families were nothing more
Nisa had no idea how complicated things truly were. Durand had made his choice years ago—opting for someone in the state government over the Draycott family. But he had never once confided in his wife, Nisa, about it. Even so, he now found it wise to apologize to the Grisham family. At the very least, it would set them apart from the Draycott and Fitzroy families. They had simply made the wrong decision at a critical moment.Durand sighed. "Alright, honey, I'll take your advice. I'm relying on you to smooth things over with the Fitzroys. Ultimately, I'm placing my trust in you, my darling wife, to fix this."Nisa took a slow sip of her coffee. "I'm glad you understand. This is a crucial moment, so make sure you clean up any messy relationships you have outside."Durand's smile faltered briefly, but he said nothing.Nisa studied him. "I'm only worried something might happen. The deceased girl's parents were easy to deal with, but others won't be. Who knows what might come up?"Th
With Amos' assurance, Durand finally felt at ease. If Amos was taking action, it meant the mastermind behind the scenes was also displeased with Aria. Others might only be all talk and no action, but Durand knew better than anyone how capable Amos was. No one could detect the flaws in Amos' plans. After all, he had been the one to handle Fiona's incident back then. The fact that he had managed to pull off such a massive deception in front of the Grisham brothers spoke volumes about his abilities. And now, he was even more formidable than before.As the third most powerful figure in Ludwiten, backed by the governor, Amos' influence extended far beyond what ordinary businessmen could fathom.The Guetta family was finally saved. Just moments ago, Durand had regretted provoking Aria, but now, he was certain—this outsider who had disrupted the Chamber of Commerce's operations was destined for a steep downfall.Otherwise, the Grisham family might actually seize control of all of Ludwi
"Now that the Draycotts are done for, the Fitzroys won't be far behind," Amos said, letting the bitterness linger before offering a glimmer of hope. "The Guetta family will take over the scholarship program."Durand barely managed to contain his excitement. Greed twisted across his face. "Don't worry. I'll manage it properly."Amos remained composed. "It's not your competence I doubt, but let's avoid another situation like that girl's. Her parents may have signed a waiver and dropped the case, but the higher-ups aren't brushing it off."You know how seriously Mr. Kelsall takes the scholarship program. You've worked with Orion on a few deliveries, so you should know."Mr. Kelsall's been in poor health lately. Start lining up some new faces. As for Aria, leave her to me."Durand's eyes lit up with opportunity. "Of course, Mr. Lune. I've been watching the Chamber of Commerce closely and have a few candidates in mind."I can take over Orion's responsibilities—and do better. As long a
Many called Fiona a lovesick fool for marrying Owen, but Nisa knew better. No woman could foresee a man's betrayal. After all, when a man was courting a woman, he would do anything to win her over. Yet once love faded, the woman became little more than a puppet. Even if he felt nothing but disgust, he wouldn't cast her aside—not if there was still something he needed from her.Nisa took a long breath, her eyes drifting to a framed family photo on the nearby shelf. Her father's face stared back at her.If not for him, the Guetta family's business wouldn't be where it was today.Back then, Durand had been willing to give up everything for Nisa. He obeyed her father's every word and deferred to him on both major and trivial decisions. He hadn't even minded being under her father's thumb.A bittersweet smile tugged at Nisa's lips as a single tear slipped down her cheek. She stared blankly at her phone for a moment, then made a decision. Anonymously, she sent a message to Fiona."T
Parents exchanged glances, and many of them were already frowning. Miguel couldn't figure out how his young mistress had shown up here. This would destroy his career! He lowered his voice so that only she could hear. "Who told you to come? Go home now!" Then he straightened up and called out loudly, "Ma'am, you've got the wrong person. Please take your child away." The artsy-looking woman started to realize there might be some misunderstanding. Normally, she wouldn't appear publicly in front of so many parents. Miguel had warned her that if she wanted a good life, she couldn't interfere with his career. But from the message she'd received today, she was clearly told that he wanted her to bring their son over. Being quick-witted, she tried to leave once she sensed something was wrong. She pulled the boy's hand.But a spoiled sixth-grader as he was, he wouldn't budge without getting what he wanted. "Dad, why are you pretending not to know me and Mom? Is it because of that old wo
Everyone turned to stare at Aria, their faces filled with disapproval. Eden caught some of the heat too; she wasn't looking so great in their eyes either. "She's so dumb to throw away such a golden opportunity." "She just doesn't get it. Her family's dirt poor, and everyone knows that." Aria heard the whispers around her. She stood her ground, eyes cool at the edges, but her expression never changed. She even let out a soft laugh. "Nice move, Mr. Sonder. A few words and everyone forgets your wrongdoings. Don't worry, though. I've brought you a special gift." As she spoke, she glanced at her watch. "It should be here any minute. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. You may call me Ms. Carver." Miguel snorted. "I couldn't care less what your name is." In his anger, he'd completely forgotten about the scandal that had been the talk of Ludwiten lately. Aria made a small sound as she hung her helmet on the bike. "I figured since you and Mr. Draycott were so tight, you'd be keep
The way Aria looked at him made Miguel feel like she could see right through him. It really got under his skin. Miguel walked over, putting on his responsible educator act. "Ms. Bohmer, I heard about your situation. It's fine if you need more time to consider, but please have your friend move her vehicle. School grounds aren't for just anyone off the street to enter whenever they please." Eden started to object. But Aria let out a soft laugh, stepping in front of her. "You're Mr. Sonder, right?" Before coming, Aria had reviewed this principal's file. His rise to this position had been swift, with an impressive résumé showing no academic fraud. But Sam wasn't just anyone—he could dig up dirt nobody else could find. This principal valued his son above all else—a son born from an affair, no less. Miguel nodded with formality. "That's me." Aria's smile didn't fade. "No wonder you looked familiar. We must have crossed paths elsewhere. Your younger son is starting middle school thi
Miguel had worked so hard to climb out of being just another underpaid teacher. Most people would have been thrilled to land a principal job, but Miguel got greedy. He never cared about shaping young minds. As he often said, "It's just a paycheck. Only losers pass up money to preach about education." That mentality might fly in small towns, but in the big city, these kids wouldn't stand a chance based on merit alone. Miguel wasn't exactly looking down on his students—he just knew the situation in each class best. Students with or without local residency permits would face different college admissions standards. Rich families already had their children's overseas education lined up, so there was no sweat required. Even if they had bad grades, it wouldn't be a problem. They could still go abroad and buy themselves a fancy degree. Money talked, and that was the harsh reality. Miguel needed that Department of Education position to set his son up right. It was pretty ironic for a
Aria would definitely have the principal of Oakvale Academy detained eventually, but not now. The moment Miguel was in custody, the people pulling his strings would smell trouble. Based on past cases, they'd likely cut all connections immediately. All their carefully gathered leads could vanish in seconds. So Miguel needed to stay free for now and even remain in plain sight. Aria said, "Don't tell your principal about what happened today." She looked at Eden. "When you go back, just attend classes like how you normally do. If Mr. Sonder asks about you, tell him you're still thinking it over. "Show how nervous you are about this, but also hint that you're eager to go abroad. You're just not quite ready yet. "Don't tell anyone about our conversation. I've added you as a contact. If anything seems off, text me immediately. "Someone will be protecting you 24/7, and your family too. So don't be afraid." As she spoke, Aria stood up. "Let's go. I'll take you back to school. They
"I don't know what Judy meant by that," Eden said as she looked up. "She never talked like that before." "Got it," Aria said, zooming in on the photo. By looking at the brand of the chocolate drink and the surrounding buildings, she could nail down the exact location. Without hesitation, she sent it to Sam for analysis. Something about this "interview" smelled fishy. She had to see firsthand what kind of meeting would change a simple and positive girl like Judy. "About those selected applicants—do you know exactly who they were?" Aria dug deeper with her questions. Once she had names, she could connect the dots between the students. These patterns would reveal what the buyers were looking for. Human trafficking was a high-stakes criminal business, and Aria did not believe this was just about exploiting young girls. The bar incident had been her wake-up call. She needed the full picture before making her move. She would just spook them if she jumped in too soon. Their oper
Aria needed to identify all the "buyers". Missing even one buyer could mean one more student was sold. "Do the selected applicants have anything in common besides their family situations?" Aria asked, and Eden shook her head. But she then added, "Everyone had good grades, so nobody ever questioned why they were chosen for scholarships. Nothing seemed fishy about it." Aria made a mental note about the good grades, then scrolled through Judy's Facebook feed. This kind of investigation was pretty straightforward for her. Even without being accepted as a friend, she could hack in easily. From her posting habits, Judy seemed like an optimist. She was a nice girl who rarely posted anything negative. But one post made Aria scroll back and look twice. The post was cheerful, with a sunny photo and a cup of chocolate. But the text caught her attention. It read, "About to start my new life! All my hard work has paid off. The interview was kind of weird, but no big deal. Let's go!" Ar
The person on the other end of the call didn't speak. He just nodded with a pouty little face from behind a computer screen. It was actually Sam. He'd been working behind the scenes all along, especially when investigating the Wagner situation. Having him tail Philip was the least suspicious option. Simon was available too, but his presence would definitely attract unwanted attention as a beast of fortune. Since they were dealing with an arcane seeker, bringing Simon would be like handing them a treasure. So Aria made the call to have Sam follow Philip, while Simon stayed with Landon. Aria was not worried about her handsome fiancé being in danger. It was only because Simon would be safest with him. The Yorks carried heavenly fortune. As long as there was no fated ordeal in play, anyone who tried to harm Landon would likely meet a bad end. After all, that purple energy surrounding him wasn't just for show. With Simon staying near him, Simon could mask Landon's aura while also
"Yeah, that's right," the rest of the burly men chimed in. The whole scene was painfully forced and fake. In reality, they just wanted to leave. But Aria wasn't about to let them off so easily. She figured she would return the favor since they'd been asking about her. She asked, "Oh, so the Draycotts owe your company money? Which company is that?" Viggo had not expected this question. He froze momentarily, then quickly replied, "Our company is small, so it's not worth mentioning. It's nothing compared to yours." "It's admirable how your company can sponsor students despite being a small one." Aria's compliment was delivered flatly. Viggo's scalp tingled with unease. "It's actually our investor. He doesn't just fund us but many companies. He came from a small town himself and wants to help these students get better learning conditions." "Now that's a rare and kind soul. I'd love to meet him sometime." Aria said casually, "Since we've had such a fortunate encounter, let's exc