six feet of reinforced concrete and a digital firewall that cost more than a small country's annual budget. Vespera stood in the center, her arms

emoved his suit jacket, leaving him in a crisp white shirt that pulled tightly across his sh

tly in the vast space. "My analysts have been trying to crack the Moretti's private

the glass interface. "That's because your analysts are looking for

he entered a string of alphanumeric characters that seemed nonsensical. The screen flickere

were silent as he moved closer, though he stopped wel

es," Vespera explained. She did not look back at him. "He keeps it because he

used by commercial vessels. They were jagged, erratic paths that skirted the edges of internatio

murmured. His voice held

hina, the Pride of Moretti, and the Crowned Jewel. They carry the debt of half the politicians in this city. E

ata. "If we seize these, we put him

he'll just scuttle the ships. We need to wait until he's desperate. We need to wait

d been a placeholder forty-eight hours ago and saw a predator wh

subject. "The Touch Protocol begins now. If you're going to be m

thrill of ten

the corner of the room. He sat down, his postu

pensive hide. She could feel the heat radiating fro

ne, "my peripheral vision goes first. Then my hearing. It feels like I'm being buri

sked. She kept her voice soft, mimick

eed one constant sensation that my brain cannot ignore. Something

et her hand hover an inch

is Adam's apple move, a rare

he felt the iron-hard muscle beneath. His skin was burning. She felt him shud

assian," sh

cuff of his shirt. She pressed her thumb against his pulse point.

. The scent of him, cold air and sandalwood, filled her lungs. She

. "Nothing else exists but the pressure of

which had been shallow and ragged, began to deepen and even ou

e she had met him, the

specialists. One of them touched me by accident, and I broke his jaw before I ev

did not stop the circles. "A ghost cannot be haunted, Cassian.

ntensity that made Vespera's breath catch. He reached up with his other han

mb grazing the bruised skin with a tenderness that felt like a threat.

Good. I want him to hear the devil knocking. And

all chimed. It was

or's

en Vespera and Cassian where they realize they share a similar kind of internal damage. It is not ju

he is certainly holding on to Vespera like his life depends on it. And those ghost ships! The Moretti

t Vespera is behind the glitch in his servers? And what do you think the board

ut it! Your theories keep me motiv