Chapter 3 - The Ghost on the Balcony
Mateo’s suppressed weapon cleared its holster in a fraction of a second, aimed directly at the heavy curtains fluttering in the draft. Damian raised a single flat palm, signaling absolute stillness. The sniper sensors on the rooftop had been disabled without an alarm sounding, a feat only achievable with high-level clearance codes.
A silhouette stepped through the rain-streaked glass doors. Water dripped from a tailored trench coat onto the polished hardwood floor. The figure removed a drenched black hood, revealing the striking, ice-cold features of Sophia Vance—Damian’s estranged younger sister.
""Put the gun down, Mateo,"" Sophia said, her voice dripping with dry exhaustion. ""If I wanted you dead, the elevator cables would have snapped twenty floors ago.""
Damian did not lower his guard. ""You haven’t set foot in this city in three years, Sophia. Why tonight?""
""Because Julian didn't send an ordinary hit squad to the docks,"" Sophia replied, tossing a waterlogged encrypted drive onto the marble counter. ""He sent them to retrieve the child, not to kill Elena. He wants the infant alive. Do you even know what father put in the supplemental will before he died?""
Damian’s jaw tightened. ""The inheritance went to the firstborn son of the ruling head.""
May you like
""No,"" Sophia said, her eyes flashing in the dim light. ""Father altered the trust two days before the heart attack. The controlling shares don't go to Julian, and they don't stay with you. They transfer entirely to the first legal grandson of the Vance line upon birth.""
Behind the closed bedroom door, the newborn let out a sudden, piercing cry.
