Aria Vale
There were many things I regretted—hesitating when my father was arrested, trusting the wrong allies, letting Jasper see my breaking point—but this?
No.
"I don't regret anything," I said. "But that doesn't mean it meant something."
He laughed softly, dark and low. "Keep lying to yourself, Vale. Eventually you might even believe it."
I hated him for being right.
And hated myself more for not pushing him away.
---
Later that afternoon, I met with Jasper in a sleek, underground bar reserved for the city's elite—where secrets flowed smoother than whiskey, and nothing ever stayed buried.
He looked at me like I was a detonator with a broken timer. "You slept with him."
I didn't deny it.
"Aria." His voice cracked with restrained fury. "You're going to get burned."
"I'm already burning."
He slammed his glass on the table. "This isn't who you are."
"No," I said, meeting his gaze. "This is who I am when I'm finally honest."
He stood, jaw clenched. "Fine. Then you need to know the rest."
I stared at him.
Jasper pulled out a small envelope and slid it across the table. "We intercepted communication between Damian and a hidden investor. Someone from the old Vale board. He's digging into your father's sealed files."
My blood ran cold. "What?"
"He's not just screwing with your head, Aria. He's unraveling the truth. And when he gets it…" Jasper leaned in. "You'll have no more secrets to shield you."
I picked up the envelope, fingers numb. Inside were photos. Messages. A flash drive.
Damian Wolfe wasn't just getting close for power or lust.
He was looking for something.
My father's last secret.
—
That night, I stood alone on my balcony, clutching the flash drive in my hand like it was a loaded gun.
If Damian found out what I had buried, he'd never look at me the same way again.
If Jasper found out I was thinking of protecting Damian, he'd betray me without hesitation.
I was no longer a player. I was the battlefield.
And I had no idea who was going to survive me.
The city lights blurred like a fever dream below me, all glass and neon and sleepless ambition. I didn't feel part of it anymore. Not really. I'd become something else—detached, like a shadow watching her own downfall unfold.
I clutched the flash drive tighter, its edges digging into my palm. Somewhere on it was a truth my father had died with—and Damian was chasing it. Why? That was the part I couldn't stop replaying.
He didn't need the file for power. He already had it.
He didn't need it to destroy me—he was already halfway there.
So what was he really after?
I was still standing there when my phone buzzed. No name. Just a number I didn't recognize.
I answered anyway. I was too far gone for caution now.
A woman's voice. Cool. Measured.
"You don't know who you're sleeping with, Miss Vale. But I do."
I froze.
"Damian Wolfe isn't looking for answers. He's looking for blood. And when he finds it, you'll wish you'd never touched him."
The line went dead.
---
The next morning, I sat across from Kira in a quiet corner of a garden café, our usual hideout when the city became too loud. She sipped her espresso slowly, watching me over the rim of her cup.
"You look like hell."
"I feel worse."
"You saw him again, didn't you?"
I didn't answer.
"You're in love with him," she said plainly.
"I'm not in love with him." I bit the words like glass.
"Then why are you spiraling?"
Because I was unraveling. Because I couldn't stop craving his voice, his hands, the way he stripped me bare without ever touching my skin.
Because some part of me—maybe the broken part—wanted him to destroy me.
I looked away. "There's something else. He's searching for a file. My father's final move before his arrest. Jasper thinks it's buried in the encrypted archives… and Damian's getting close."
Kira's face sharpened. "You have it, don't you?"
I didn't answer. I didn't need to.
She exhaled. "Aria, if that file exposes what your father did, it could take down more than Wolfe. It could bury you, too."
I know.
But I didn't say it. I just stared down into my untouched coffee, feeling the heat fade as quickly as my resolve.
---
Later that night, I opened my father's old safe.
The flash drive slid into the port like a key into a coffin.
A password screen blinked to life.
One word.
I knew it before I even typed it.
"Aria."
The file opened.
Lines of text. Old ledger codes. Photos of deals that were never supposed to exist. My father hadn't just been betrayed.
He'd been working with Damian's father. Silent partnerships. Shared assets. Hidden accounts.
They were allies once. Until one of them buried the other.
My breath caught. My world tilted.
This wasn't revenge anymore. This was legacy. This was inheritance soaked in blood.
And I was at the center of it.
My phone buzzed again.
Damian: Come to the penthouse. I won't ask twice.
I stared at the message, heart pounding.
Because now I knew the truth.
We weren't just at war.
We were heirs of the same violent empire.
And only one of us would get out alive.