Chapter 3 - The Ghost of the NorthGlass shattered in a deafening cascade of glittering shards.
Before Dominic could shout an order, Mara vaulted over the low mahogany windowsill with the athletic agility of a trained operative, disappearing into the dark, rain-slicked acreage of the Vale estate.
"Damn it!" Dominic cursed, rushing to the window.
Below, the security floodlights flickered across the manicured lawns. Shadows stretched long and menacing against the high iron perimeter fences.
"Don't bother chasing her," Evelyn said calmly, stepping up beside him. She reached down and scooped the fallen amber vial off the rug with a handkerchief. "She won't get past the northern perimeter. Not tonight."
Dominic turned on her, his eyes blazing with a mixture of fury, guilt, and profound shock.
"You knew," he accused, stepping into her personal space. "You knew she was poisoning him, and you didn't tell me? You let her push you around, you let her build this entire web, and you waited until the last possible second?"
"If I had told you without proof, what would you have done?" Evelyn countered, her voice unyielding. She looked up at him, her grey eyes flashing with equal intensity. "You would have interrogated her. She would have played the victim, cried on your shoulder, and you would have sent her away with a severance package. And three days later, she would have found another way to finish the job. In our world, Dominic—the world of cartels, syndicates, and corporate blood-money—proof is currency. I needed to catch her red-handed."
Dominic stared at her. For the first time, he saw the real Evelyn Hart.
She wasn't the submissive, cold trophy bride her father had traded to him to secure the northern trade routes. She was a sniper operating in plain sight, calculating angles while everyone else was blinded by emotion.
At that moment, little Noah in the crib let out a sudden, loud, healthy cry—a robust sound that shattered the heavy tension in the room.
The air was clearing. The paralysis hadn't reached his lungs yet because Evelyn had burst in just as Mara was administering the final, concentrated dose.
Dominic exhaled slowly, sliding his gun back into his shoulder holster. He ran a hand through his dark hair, feeling the cold sweat clinging to his neck.
"Who is she?" Dominic asked quietly.
"Not a nanny," Evelyn replied, walking over to the crib and gently stroking Noah's cheek. The baby quieted instantly beneath her touch, his tiny fingers wrapping around her index finger. "A ghost. Or worse... an asset belonging to someone who wants the Vale organization dismantled from the inside out."
Dominic’s phone buzzed violently in his pocket.
He pulled it out. It was a encrypted satellite transmission from his head of security, Viktor.
Boss, Viktor’s voice rasped over the speaker, laced with static. We have a breach at the southern shipping yards. Warehouse Four has been torched. And... boss, you need to see this. We found a dead body in the security office.
Dominic’s blood ran cold. "Whose body?"
It’s your brother’s former accountant. The one who handled the offshore accounts. And boss... he didn't die in the highway explosion six months ago. He was murdered tonight.
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Dominic looked up from the screen, locking eyes with Evelyn.
The game hadn't just begun. It had been playing for six months, and they were already checkmated unless they played their next move perfectly.
