The pre-dawn light crept through the villa's curtains, painting shadows across Alex's face as he watched Sonia prepare. She moved with practiced efficiency, checking the signal jammer—now completely depleted—and securing the few possessions they'd accumulated during their flight from Macau.
"The storm has passed," she observed, glancing through a gap in the curtains. "Clear visibility to the northwestern point."
Alex nodded, his mind still processing the revelations of the night before. The knowledge that their meeting—their entire professional relationship—had been orchestrated as part of a Rodriguez dynasty left a bitter taste. But beneath that manipulation lay something genuine, something neither his father nor mother had anticipated: real connection.
"We have approximately ninety
