Selene didn't sleep.
She was curled on her office chair, heels tossed aside, knees were tightened on her chest. Eyes locked on the security monitors as if she was waiting for a ghost to crawl out of the dark.
Cam had doubled security. Darius was downstairs, handling cleanup.
But that feeling wouldn't leave.
That weight pressing behind her eyes.
Something was wrong.
Something was always wrong when the silence stretched too long.
A soft knock broke through the quiet.
She didn't flinch. "Come in."
Cam entered, holding a folded note. "Found this by the back exit. No prints. No trail."
She took it.
Unfolded the paper with steady fingers.
One line stared back at her in black ink:
He's not yours. He's theirs.
Her stomach dropped.
"Who saw him last?" she asked.
"Darius?" Cam leaned on the desk. "He hasn't left the club."
Selene narrowed her eyes. "Keep it that way."
She found him upstairs, in the lounge bar, sleeves rolled up, arms streaked with brick dust. He'd been overseeing the stash move.
He looked solid. Steady.
Too steady.
That's what scared her.
"You good?" he asked.
She gave a quick nod. "Fine."
He raised an eyebrow. "Liar."
She tilted her head. "You'd know."
He studied her. "Something's up."
She handed him the note.
He read it. Blinked once.
"You think I wrote this?"
"I don't know."
"After everything?"
"That's the problem."
He stepped in closer. "Look me in the eye and tell me you think I'm still with them."
She didn't blink. "I don't think you are. But I don't think you ever really got away either."
His jaw clenched. "You want me to prove it?"
"I want you to be honest about who might still have a hold on you."
He didn't answer.
Didn't have to.
Selene crossed her arms. "Talk."
He leaned back on the couch and dried his face as if he had been tired for years.
"When I walked, it wasn't clear," he said. "They didn't think I'd stay gone. I didn't either. Thought I'd disappear, lay low, maybe circle back."
"And then?"
"And then I met you."
She didn't move.
"There's a man. Rennox. Government black ops. Doesn't follow the rules. He made sure I couldn't vanish easy."
"What does he have on you?"
Darius looked straight at her. "My sister."
Her breath caught.
"He kept her under their protection. Claimed it was safety. But really, it was leverage."
"Why did you not tell me?"
"Because I already knew what you were going to say."
She took a step back. "What would I say?"
"That love shouldn't come with a leash."
And he wasn't wrong.
That's what made it worse.
Selene gripped the back of a chair. "So what does Rennox want now?"
"I don't know. But if someone dropped that note, he's not finished with me."
She turned to him. "Then we finish him first."
That night, Selene met Cam in the garage.
Oil and dried blood filled the air.
"I need a name," she said.
Cam frowned. "Whose?"
"Rennox."
He scratched his chin. "The ghost?"
"Dig him up."
"You serious?"
"I want everything. Files. Contacts. Safe houses. Hell, I want the vet that treats his dog."
Cam grinned. "There she is."
"I never left," she said. "Just got angrier."
Two hours later, Cam dropped a folder on her desk.
"Ghost came with shadows," he said. "But here's what I scraped up."
Photos. Reports. Surveillance.
And one face that stood out.
A girl.
Darius's sister.
Mid-twenties. Big eyes. An address.
"Where is she now?" Selene asked.
Cam tapped the last page. "Safe house. Outside the city. High security. Deep clearance."
She stared at the photo.
At the name.
Leena Vex.
Selene didn't tell Darius.
Not that night.
She needed leverage.
Even on the man she wanted.
Especially on the man she wanted.
She picked up a phone she hadn't used in years.
Two rings. Then a voice.
"Boss Lady," it purred. "Didn't think you'd crawl out of the woodwork."
"I need a clean extract," she said. "Quiet. Precise."
"Target?"
"Leena Vex."
Pause.
"High profile," the voice said. "Tight security. Dangerous move."
"Can you do it?"
"Only if I don't ask why."
"You never do."
"Then it's done."
The line went dead.
And Selene exhaled.
Because tonight, she crossed a line she'd never dared touch before.
Family.
The next morning, Darius walked into her room.
Eyes red. Voice cracked.
"She's gone."
Selene blinked. "Who?"
"My sister."
"What?"
"Her place is empty. No phone. No trail. Nothing."
She stood slowly. "Are you sure?"
He nodded. "They moved her."
"You think this is a punishment?"
"I just don't know. But it happened after that note."
She reached for him. "We'll find her."
He didn't react.
Just stared at her. Hard.
"You're too calm."
Selene stiffened. "excuse me?"
"You're don't even like her. But you're acting like this is routine."
"Don't project on me."
He stepped closer. "You knew."
"I—"
"You had someone on her."
"I had someone on you."
He grabbed her wrist. "Where is she?"
"Safe."
His face cracked.
"You took her."
Selene didn't blink. "I secured her."
"You used her to control me."
"I protected you."
"No. You played me."
His hand dropped.
He stepped back as like he had been punched on the face.
"And you think that makes us even?"
"No," she said. "It makes us the same."
He gave a bitter laugh.
"You're just like them."
She crossed her arms. "That's what it takes to win."
"Or to lose who you are."
Selene stepped forward. "I didn't lose myself. I made a choice."
He stared at her like she was a stranger.
Then he walked out.
She didn't stop him.
Didn't say a word.
She just stood there.
Shaking.
Because maybe this time—she'd gone too far.
Three hours later, Cam walked in.
"You're not gonna like this."
"Try me."
He dropped a photo on her desk.
Darius.
Meeting a man in a suit.
Rennox.
Caption: Seen 12 hours ago.
Selene's stomach knotted.
"This was yesterday?"
Cam nodded. "Before he talked to you."
She sank into the chair.
Heart pounding.
"Still trust him?" Cam asked.
She didn't answer.
Didn't know how.
For the first time since all this began, Selene Vale didn't feel like a boss.
She felt like a fool.
That night, someone slipped into her suite.
No sound. No warning.
Gun drawn.
Fast. Focused.
Selene reached for hers—too slow.
"Don't."
Female voice.
She turned.
The mask came off.
Leena.
Eyes wild.
Gun steady.
"You ripped me from my life," Leena said.
"I kept you safe."
"You used me."
"Your brother's in danger."
Leena snorted. "He always is. But you? You're the real threat."
Selene's eyes narrowed. "What are you planning?"
Leena raised the gun.
"I'm here to take you down before he has to."
Selene's hand slid toward her drawer.
Leena cocked the gun. "Don't."
Selene held her stare.
Smiled.
"Then pull the trigger."
Leena's hand trembled.
But she didn't shoot.
She turned and ran.
Selene reached the door too late.
Gone.
Then her phone buzzed.
No name. Just a video.
She hit play.
It was Darius.
With Rennox.
Laughing. Shaking hands. Walking away together.
The final frame froze.
Darius's face.
Caption beneath it:
He never left us.