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The champagne bucket was silver-plated, weighted with a thick brass base, and heavy enough to crack pavement. / Chapter 8 / 8

Chapter 8 - THE QUEEN OF THE UNDERWORLD

Six months later, the grand ballroom of the Sterling Estate was packed with the most powerful elites, politicians, and syndicate lords from across the globe.

The occasion was the wedding of the century.

Priya Sharma—once a struggling rookie waitress working a four-hour shift to pay her brother's medical bills—stood at the top of the grand marble staircase.

She wore a custom-designed haute couture gown of midnight silk and cascading silver lace, the blood-red ruby ring shining brilliantly on her finger.

At the bottom of the stairs waited Elliot Sterling, looking up at her like a king greeting his rightful queen.

As Priya descended the steps, the heavy oak doors at the back of the ballroom slowly creaked open. A hush fell over the entire room.

A tall, elegant woman wrapped in a white mink coat stepped inside, walking with a cold, terrifying grace. It was Elena Vance—the secretive head of the European Syndicate, a woman rumored to have eliminated half her rivals before breakfast.

Every bodyguard in the room instantly reached for their holsters.

Elena stopped halfway down the aisle, her lips curving into a sharp, mocking smile as she looked up at Priya.

“So this is the little waitress who took down Gregor,” Elena’s voice echoed clearly across the silent ballroom. “Let’s see if she can handle a real war.”

Before Elena could even draw the small pearl-handled revolver hidden in her coat, Priya didn't flinch, didn't panic, and didn't wait for Elliot to move.

With blinding speed, Priya unclipped a heavy silver ceremonial dagger from her garter belt beneath her wedding dress and hurled it across the room.

The blade spun through the air, burying itself deep into the wooden pillar a mere inch from Elena’s cheek, sending a lock of her blonde hair fluttering to the floor.

Elena froze, the color draining entirely from her face as she stared at the trembling blade.

Priya reached the bottom of the stairs, slipping her hand smoothly into Elliot’s warm, powerful palm. She looked up at her new husband with a cool, dangerous smile.

Elliot chuckled softly, pressing a kiss to her knuckles before looking out over the terrified crowd of global elites.

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“Welcome to the family,” Elliot whispered to his new bride.

And as the ballroom erupted into applause, the Queen of the Underworld smiled back.

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