na

r sprawling penthouse, the silence of

door cli

filling the entryway, carrying a m

eenhouse-a twisted hobby for a man who

the glass coffee table, his expression

ating through the quiet room. "But you know my duty to The

then up into the dark, barren eyes of t

ng like a cheap ledger soaked in water, its ink blurring and running, bleedin

nto the syndicate boardroom, their cloying scent a bitt

syndicate boardroom closed wit

d tang of cigar smoke and the collecti

f the projector illuminating the meticulous financial la

ions through a network of international real es

his posture deceptively relaxed, his dark

said, his voice cutting through

iffened, the men h

y even despite the sudden, frantic pulse against my ribs. "I

hat made the men around him shift un

in the air as if to brush away an insect. "We are not

ing, "Focus on the charity galas, Sie

my peers, stripping away my a

ced a thin line across my index finger. I watched a single bead of blood well to the s

ot wipe