ARRDE
I stared at my phone, the glow from the screen casting long shadows across my desk. Mira Vale’s name sat there, still and silent, waiting for me to press call. I had half a mind to cancel everything—this event, this absurd trip to Paris, all of it—but that would only give them what they wanted. Whoever *they* were. I didn’t know yet. But my gut whispered that Alpha Sinclair wasn’t just making last-minute changes for the sake of efficiency.
He was moving pieces. Strategically. Quietly. Like a seasoned player toying with a queen before the final strike.
I pressed the call button.
“Mira,” I said sharply the moment she picked up. “We need to talk. About the Stardom event. Now.”
“Understood,” came her even reply, emotionless and crisp. “I’ll be there in five.”
She hung up without wa
