"The Mayor invited me to his private estate," Rafael stated, his baritone voice dropping into a dark, captivating register. "And I never turn down a personal invitation."
Lyra stared at him through the dim light of the moving carriage, her amber eyes reflecting quiet skepticism.
"The Mayor does not invite syndicate founders for tea, Rafael," Lyra warned, crossing her arms tightly across her chest. "It is a trap designed to draw you out into the open."
"Every invitation from the elite is a trap, Lyra," Rafael replied smoothly, a faint smirk playing on his lips. "The trick is learning how to spring it on your own terms."
The black carriage wove smoothly through the damp asphalt streets, leaving the dark alleys of Sector 3 far behind.
The neon lights of the high-end district began t
