Jack’s gaze lingered on the encrypted tablet Devon had handed him. His jaw tightened as he read the headline flashing across the screen: “Riviera Asset Under Hostile Acquisition Attempt – Unknown Foreign Backers Suspected.” Below it, the name Victor Krane burned like a curse.
Jack looked up, scanning the crowd as if he expected Victor to materialize right then.
Sarah stepped closer. “Jack… what’s Riviera?”
“An old project,” he muttered. “One I thought I buried.”
“You need help?”
Jack smiled faintly. “No. But I might need distance.”
“From me?” she asked, barely above a whisper.
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he turned and walked away.
Later that night, Jack entered a dimly lit, bare-walled apartment on the outskirts of Eastvale. No luxury finishes. No guards. Just a concrete floor, a c
