My blood ran cold. Thorne didn’t move, didn't even blink, just stood there, a mountain of dark tailored cloth and muscle, absorbing the scene with a chilling placidity. This wasn't a confrontation; it was a collection. He was an asset retriever, and I was just another asset to be managed.
“The ledger, Ms. Vance,” he said, extending a hand the size of a dinner plate. His voice was devoid of emotion, a flat, dead thing. “Don’t make this difficult.”
Difficult. The word was a sick joke. Difficult was discovering your entire life was built on a foundation of murder and forgery. Difficult was staring down the man who was here to erase the final proof of it.
Alexander shifted his weight, a subtle, almost imperceptible movement that placed him slightly in front of me. “There’s been a misunderst
