Selene Ardent — The First Move
Kieran didn't sleep that night.
Neither did Selene.
The city outside her window remained quiet, but her mind moved with precision. Julian's voice replayed in her head—not the words, but the timing. The confidence. The assumption that she would bend.
He still thought Amara Solis existed.
That was his first mistake.
By morning, Selene had already mapped three routes of response. Legal. Financial. Personal. She chose the one that would hurt fastest.
"Kieran," she said, fastening her coat. "I need access to the old accounts. The ones Julian thought I never understood."
Kieran blinked. "Those are buried under layers of legal fog. You barely looked at them before."
Selene met his gaze. Calm. Certain.
"I was kind before," she said. "Not blind."
Something sharp flickered through him—admiration edged with alarm.
"Are you sure?" he asked quietly. "If you move now, he'll notice."
Selene stepped closer, lowering her voice."I want him to."
She walked past him, leaving silence in her wake.
Kieran stayed where he was, heart pounding.
For the first time, he realized—Protecting her might mean standing behind her, not in front.
And he didn't know if he was ready for that.
Amara Solis — Trust Under Watch
The investigation began without her name being spoken.
That was how Darius worked.
Amara felt it in the way guards lingered longer. In the shift of eyes when she entered a room. In the quiet conversations that stopped the moment she appeared.
She didn't blame them.
If she were in their place, she would be watching too.
That evening, Darius found her in the study, seated among shelves she'd never touched before. A book rested open in her lap—not business. Not strategy.
History.
"You're reading now?" he asked.
Amara looked up. "I thought I should understand where I am."
He studied her carefully. "And what have you learned?"
"That power doesn't only belong to the loudest person in the room," she said after a pause. "Sometimes it belongs to the one who waits."
Darius's expression darkened—not with suspicion, but something closer to restraint.
"You know they're watching you," he said. "If you're hiding something, now would be the time to tell me."
Amara stood, hands steady despite the fear threading through her chest.
"I'm not hiding," she said softly. "I'm changing."
Silence fell.
Darius stepped closer, his presence heavy, dangerous. "Change makes enemies," he said. "Especially here."
"I know," Amara replied. "That's why I need you to believe me."
Their gazes locked.
For a moment, Darius almost reached out.
Then a phone vibrated sharply on the desk.
He glanced at the screen. His jaw tightened.
"We've traced the leak," he said. "It wasn't internal."
Amara exhaled softly.
"But," he continued, eyes lifting to meet hers, "someone wanted it to look that way."
The relief faded.
"Who?" she asked.
Darius didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he said, "From now on, you don't go anywhere alone."
Amara nodded.
Protection, she realized, came with a cost.
And trust was the most dangerous currency of all.