My gut cramped. “Who made the purchase?”
Her lips tightened. “A shell company. Malik Makida Ltd. Registered in the Caymans. My people brought this to me a few weeks ago, and they’ve been trying to trace the owners, but you know how impossible that can be, even with our resources.”
“It might be a coincidence,” I pointed out. “People buy stocks for all sorts of reasons all the time.”
She nodded but said, “I don’t know that I believe in coincidences like this.”
I wasn’t sure I did either.
“So what do you propose?” I asked. “We can hardly throw out a blanket accusation with so little information. It would incite mistrust and would only prompt the betrayer to cover their tracks even further.”
“Of course.” She leaned back and crossed one leg over the other. “I think we must set a trap. In the game. Dangle a lure—another lucrative opportunity—and see if anyone bites. That, at least, will confirm that my suspicions are correct and one of us is complicit.”
“And if no one bites?”
Selene lifted one shoulder in an elegant shrug. “Then perhaps I’ll start to believe in coincidences.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose and stood up again to pace. “Okay… so we wait for the game expansion? Later this week?”
She shook her head. “We need time to act if and when someone takes the bait.”
I groaned and considered the situation before landing on the answer.
We’d planned to quietly find the contraband on theMV Helvig Starand return it to Drakovic. But if, instead, we moved through official channels and allowed the Helvig line to take credit for stopping the plot… and then planted several rumors about Helvig’s strong dedication to stopping terrorism in its tracks… it would boost the company’s reputation in the industry, leading to global growth and profitability.
An unmissable opportunity for an investor.
“I have an idea,” I said.
“What is it?”
“You’ll see first thing in the morning when I make my move.”
Her face widened into a grin. “Your grandfather would be proud of you, Locke. Not surprised, just proud.”
I managed a ghost of a smile. “Thank you.”
But while I might trust Selene more than the others, I knew better than to take everything she said at face value. That was why I wasn’t sharing my plan.
As we parted ways, I dragged myself back to my suite. Every step felt like ten, and my eyes stung like I’d pulled an all-nighter.
I’d grown up knowing I’d eventually wear twin capes of power and secrecy, but in moments like this, the weight of them was almost too much to carry.
And there wasn’t a single soul I could share that weight with either. No one in my life—not the sister I adored, not the people I worked with, not the women (or man) who’d shared my bed—could ever know the truth of Paxis. And I couldn’t trust anyone on the council enough to get close to them.
The realization made me on edge and out of sorts.
And that wasbeforeI got to my bedroom and remembered I had a drug lord’s son to murder.
“You’re here,” Jett said, glancing up from where he already reclined in my bed.
“I’m here.”
His face was serious as he met my eyes. “We need to talk.”
I crossed my arms and glared at him. “Agreed. Start talking.”
Jett pushed himself upright and leaned against the headboard.
