Clair was done being just a target.
She'd spent the last five days behind mansion walls, learning the layout, watching the staff, listening more than she spoke. No one said it aloud, but they all treated her like a porcelain doll, or a ticking bomb.
Whispers followed her through halls. Some admired her. Others feared what her presence meant.
But no one dared cross her path.
Until she crossed theirs.
Clair slipped into the surveillance room early that morning, unnoticed. The door was slightly ajar, buzzing softly with the sound of radios and shifting screens.
"Can I help you, ma'am?" asked a bulky man at the desk.
Clair smiled. "I'm not lost. Just curious."
The guard looked unsure. "Mr. Montgomery doesn't allow...."
"I'm Mrs. Montgomery now. Or didn't you hear?" she said coolly.
His mouth clamped shut. He moved aside.
Clair scanned the monitors. Dozens of feeds showed Austin's businesses, safe houses, and routes. She saw guards loading crates, exchanging coded signals, and one screen with a name flashing red.
BLACKSON — CODE LEVEL 3.
"What's Code Level 3?" she asked.
The guard hesitated. "Direct threat. High-level movement near border zones."
"Is that recent?"
"Last night."
Clair narrowed her eyes. "Why wasn't Austin informed?"
"He was. Four hours ago."
And he didn't tell me… again.
She left without a word, fury simmering behind her calm eyes.
When she found Austin, he was on the back terrace with Marco, both sipping coffee as if nothing were wrong.
"You were briefed about a Code Level 3 threat last night," she said bluntly, cutting straight into the conversation.
Austin looked up, slow and unreadable. "You've been snooping."
"Call it proactive survival."
Marco raised a brow, amused, but said nothing.
Clair continued, "You said you'd tell me everything if I stayed. You lied."
Austin dismissed Marco with a nod before facing her fully.
"I didn't lie. I protected you."
She scoffed. "You're not protecting me when you're hiding threats. I'm not just your weakness, Austin. I'm your wife, even if this whole thing started twisted."
He stepped toward her, voice low. "You think I don't lie awake every night wondering if putting you in my world was the worst mistake I've ever made?"
Clair's lips parted, caught off guard by his confession.
"You think I enjoy this? Watching you flinch every time a window creaks? You're not a pawn, Clair. You're the only person I can't afford to lose. That makes you a target."
"And yet, you don't trust me."
His eyes burned into hers. "Trust gets people killed."
That afternoon, Austin's phone buzzed with a secure code from an untraceable number.
He opened the message in silence. A single image downloaded.
Clair's face.
Crosshairs over her heart.
Austin's jaw clenched. His knuckles cracked as he gripped the phone hard enough to break the screen.
Marco rushed in at the sound of the crack. "Boss?"
Austin turned the phone around. "They just made it personal."
Marco studied the image. "We need to strike first."
"No," Austin said. "We let them think I'm vulnerable. We let them get real close."
He looked toward the hallway Clair had disappeared into minutes earlier.
"Then we burn them to the ground."
Clair stood in the indoor greenhouse behind the mansion, pruning herbs. The scent of rosemary and mint soothed her, but her mind raced.
She didn't want to be a mafia queen. She didn't want bodyguards and snipers and encrypted maps.
But walking away now would mean never knowing who might show up at her door one day.
She wasn't just protecting herself anymore.
She was protecting the person she might be falling for.
Even if he terrified her.
That night, Austin appeared at her bedroom door again, but this time, he knocked.
Clair opened it slowly. "Thought you owned the place?"
He gave her a tight smile. "Trying something new."
"Like what?"
"Respect."
She stepped aside, letting him in. The tension between them was thick, but under it was something tender… like the start of a truce.
"I need to show you something," he said.
He handed her the phone.
She stared at the image of herself in the crosshairs.
Color drained from her face. "When did you get this?"
"Hours ago."
"You should've told me."
"I'm telling you now."
Her voice shook. "They want to kill me to hurt you."
"Yes."
Clair handed the phone back, took a breath, and said, "Then teach me how to fight."
Austin blinked. "What?"
"If I'm your weakness, then I need to become your weapon."
"You don't know what you're asking."
"I know exactly what I'm asking. If they come for me again, I want to be ready."
Austin stared at her, torn between fury and admiration.
Finally, he said, "Training starts tomorrow."