The city looked different at night.
Not softer—never softer.
Just sharper.
Like every light hid a secret, and every shadow waited to expose one.
Lena felt it the moment they stepped out of the car.
This wasn’t another calculated appearance.
This wasn’t strategy wrapped in luxury.
This was something else.
Something final.
⸻
“Stay close,” Ethan said, his voice low but edged with something she hadn’t heard before.
Not control.
Urgency.
Lena didn’t argue.
Didn’t tease.
Didn’t push.
Because whatever line they’d crossed—
They were deep past it now.
⸻
The building loomed ahead—glass, steel, power.
Untouchable.
Or at least—
It used to be.
“His?” Lena asked quietly.
Ethan nodded once.
“Yes.”
Victor’s territory.
Her pulse spiked.
Good.
Let it.
Fear meant awareness.
And
