Chapter 2 - Bloodlines and Blackmail
The glowing screen reflected in Christian's eyes, illuminating a string of red distress signals from Vance Global’s private maritime terminal. His security feed was dark. Not scrambled—severed. Every camera across dock seventy-four had been bypassed using an administrative clearance that belonged to only one person: his late father.
""Who did this?"" Christian demanded, his gaze snapping from the screen back to Clara.
Clara remained serene in her ivory throne, Titan's heavy breathing the only ambient rhythm in the cavernous room. ""I told you, Christian. You focus entirely on brute force. Leashes, fences, NDAs, armed sentries. You forget that your father built this empire on leverage, and he left his ledger to someone who understood how to read between the lines.""
""You touched the vault in Geneva,"" Christian said, realization turning his words into razor blades. ""You went behind my back before you even set foot in this house.""
""Your father knew what kind of monster he raised,"" Clara murmured, rising gracefully to her feet. The silk robe swished softly against her ankles. Titan immediately rose with her, standing like an iron wall between her hips and Christian's fury. ""He knew you would burn his legacy to ashes just to prove you answered to no one. He wanted a safeguard. So he found me.""
Christian stepped sideways, attempting to flank her, but Titan shifted in perfect synchrony, baring a ridge of ivory teeth with a terrifying, silent snarl. The guards in the shadows drew their weapons halfway, metal clicking against holsters.
""Stand down!"" Christian barked without turning his head. He couldn't afford a stray bullet piercing the dog, and certainly not the woman who held the decryption keys to seventy percent of his family’s offshore assets. ""Leave the room. Now.""
The three guards hesitated for a fraction of a second before retreating backward, closing the double mahogany doors with a muffled, ominous thud. The vast hall felt instantly tighter, suffocated by the tension between two predators circling an unseen kill.
""You think money gives you armor?"" Christian stepped closer, defying Titan's growl until he was barely an arm’s length away. ""I built half these ports with my bare hands. I can lose the cargo, Clara. I can lose the money. What you cannot survive is me.""
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Clara reached out, her fingers hovering just inches from Christian’s chest, hovering over the lapel of his tailored coat. ""You aren't worried about the cargo, Christian. You're worried about what’s inside container forty-two. You think I don't know who is sleeping inside that crate?""
Christian’s jaw twitched, the tiny scar above his brow flaring stark white. Before he could speak, a sickening thud echoed from the balcony doors behind them, followed by the shattering of glass.
