Maiden Passion

Chapter 16

Ben’s nights had grown colder, darker. Not because of the weather, but because of the tightening web around him. Every step he took in the boardroom or on the street felt like walking across a glass floor—cracks forming beneath with each move.

He sat at his desk at Vinx Wrist Collections, the office dimly lit, the only light coming from the desk lamp illuminating sketches of a new wristwatch series. But his mind wasn’t on designs. It was on Jane. On Alex. And on the phone call he’d made, that shouldn’t have happened.

Tomiwa stepped in, breaking the silence. “You wanted to see me, sir?”

Ben looked up. “Yeah. We need tighter surveillance. Not just on Vinx, but Boca Holdings too. I suspect Frank’s feeding someone information.”

Tomiwa’s brow twitched. “You think he’s leaking data?”

Ben nodded slowly. “I can’t prove it yet. But his movements don’t add up. He’s been meeting someone off-the-grid.”

“I’ll get on it,” Tomiwa said, his voice low and resolute. “We’ll trace his calls. Follow his trail.”

Ben knew he could trust Tomiwa. The man owed his life to Chief Laz, and that debt ran deep. Tomiwa had once been left for dead by a rival cartel—Chief Laz rescued him and gave him a second chance. Loyalty like that didn’t falter.

Across town, Jane paced her apartment, phone in hand. She hadn’t told Alex about the night with Ben. Not entirely. There were pieces she wanted to keep for herself, not out of love, but out of power.

“You’re losing grip,” Alex hissed over the phone. “You were supposed to record the night. Did you?”

“I have enough,” Jane replied.

“Enough isn’t good enough. We had a plan, Jane. Don’t start thinking with your—”

She cut him off. “Don’t you dare. I know what I’m doing.”

But doubt had crept into her voice. Alex noticed. And miles away, so did the man listening in on their call. A shadow with no name. The man Frank reported to.

Back at Boca Holdings, Chief Laz met with his legal team. The debt was heavy, but there was movement. A partnership was being negotiated with an Australian tech conglomerate. Quiet. Cautious.

“What about the Gambia venture?” Chief Laz asked.

“Still pending approvals,” the lawyer replied. “But your son’s presence there and his marriage to Diana has accelerated trust.”

Chief Laz nodded, but his mind drifted to Shadrach. The man who was once a loyal friend was now... something else. He was a mole. A ghostly shadow he couldn't trace directly. But Laz felt it. And he knew Frank was involved somehow.

That night, Diana lay next to Ben in their hotel suite in Abuja. They were in the city for a silent investor meeting. Her head rested on his chest, but his thoughts were miles away.

“You’re distant again,” she whispered.

“Just... tired.”

“Ben,” she said, her fingers tracing his ribs. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

He paused and kissed her forehead. “Nothing that concerns us.”

But Diana wasn’t convinced. She had seen Jane’s name flash on Ben’s screen earlier, and his reaction had been too quick, too defensive. She didn’t speak of it. Not yet.

The next morning, Tomiwa arrived at Ben’s temporary office with a flash drive.

“Surveillance from last week,” he said. “Frank met a man in a tinted Lexus. We traced the plates to a dummy corporation.”

Ben took the drive and plugged it into his laptop. The footage loaded—Frank entering a black vehicle, staying inside for fifteen minutes, then leaving with a white envelope. No clear shots of the other man. Just a silhouette.

“Zoom on the figure,” Ben said.

Tomiwa did. The image sharpened just enough to show the man’s hand. A serpent tattoo wrapped around his wrist.

Ben’s heart skipped. He had seen that tattoo before. Long ago, during a visit to Gambia. It belonged to a fixer known only as “Salim.” The same fixer who once worked for a rival of Diana’s father.

“What’s Salim doing in Lagos?” Ben murmured.

Tomiwa crossed his arms. “Whatever it is... it’s not good.”

Ben stared at the screen. The game had shifted again. Shadrach might not be working alone. And Frank... Frank wasn’t just a mole. He was a pawn. Or worse, a willing accomplice.

Just as Ben reached for his phone to call his father, his screen buzzed. A message from Jane.

Meet me tonight. Alone. Or your secret becomes everyone’s.

He exhaled, anger simmering. “She wants a meeting.”

Tomiwa frowned. “Want me to shadow you?”

Ben shook his head. “No. I need her to feel like she’s in control. Just until I know what she’s really playing at.”

Later that evening, Ben arrived at the rendezvous point—a quiet rooftop bar in Ikoyi. Jane was already there, red lips curled into a sly smile.

“Glad you came,” she purred.

Ben said nothing, just sat opposite her.

“Relax,” she cooed. “You’re safe with me.”

He smiled faintly. “Define safe.”

Her fingers slid across the table toward his. “You’re the most interesting man I’ve ever met, Ben. Let me have you... and I’ll protect your little secret forever.”

Ben’s eyes narrowed. “You’re not the only one with secrets, Jane.”

She tilted her head. “Careful, lover boy.”

Their moment was interrupted by a flicker of movement in the shadows. Ben noticed it. So did Jane. A man in a hood watching them from across the rooftop.

Jane paled. “We need to leave. Now.”

Ben’s blood ran cold. “Who is that?”

But Jane was already on her feet, trembling.

Ben looked back at the figure, but the man was gone. Just like that.

Whoever he was, he wasn’t here for Ben. He was here for Jane.

And that changed everything.