Steam curled lazily from Natasha's coffee cup as she hunched over a tangle of screens. Her fingers danced across the keyboard, eyes sharp, movements precise. She wasn't just a tech genius—she was the system's ghost, the unseen codebreaker who could unlock secrets buried so deep even the machine forgot they existed.
She had one eye on the global network—and the other still fixed on a ghost of the past.
"Still no ping," she muttered, swiping between tabs. "Come on, Paige… where the hell did you go?"
The office door burst open. Robert stepped in, coat still flaring from the momentum.
"Please tell me you've found something on the Shikongos," he said.
Natasha barely glanced up. "Not yet. I was checking for updates on Paige's signal."
Robert slammed the folder he was carrying on her desk. "Leave that mess alone! Paige doesn't want to be found. We've got more immediate threats—like Nathaniel Shikongo."
Natasha arched an eyebrow. "Who's that?"
Robert blinked, stunned. "Are you serious?"
She leaned back, sipping her coffee with mock innocence. "Should I be?"
He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Nathan Shikongo is only one of the most influential young tycoons in Namibia. He runs Shikongo Industries—a monstrous empire of estates, hotels, lounges, engineering labs, marketing firms… you name it. He practically owns half of Windhoek. After Victor Samuels died, Nathan became our top funder. Without him, Aid wouldn't even be running."
Natasha looked impressed despite herself. "And he lives...?"
"Klein Kuppe. One of his estates. He's got a big family too—extended, traditional, the whole nine yards. The matriarch, Kuku Veronica, runs the household like a military base."
She nodded. "Sounds like a fortress."
"It was—until recently."
Robert slid the folder toward her. "They just hosted a wedding. His older brother, Adam Shikongo, got married. Huge event. Open bar, camera crews, politicians. But Ruben—Nathan's driver—caught sight of an armed man sneaking toward Nathan's room mid-reception. He chased him, almost got him, but the bastard slipped away."
"Someone tried to kill our funder?" Natasha said, her tone now deadly serious.
"Yes. And if whoever stole Aid is behind this, then we're staring at something much bigger than just a breach. We're staring at war."
"And the girlfriend?" Natasha asked, scanning the document.
"Catty," Robert said. "Born in Namibia, raised in Spain. She just came back and immediately latched onto Nathan. Apparently, he was her high school crush—she followed his every move online for years. Now she's here. Clingy, obsessive, territorial. And get this—she's also looking for someone."
"Her sister," Natasha said, already reading between the lines.
Robert nodded. "Yep. That family's got enough drama to write ten spy thrillers, and now we're tangled in their web."
Natasha narrowed her eyes. "Looks like the game's changed, Robert."
He looked at her with a grim smile. "And the board just got a whole lot bigger."