Xavier POV

The news broke just before dawn.

Tatiana Chase, former Black Empire associate found dead in custody.

The headline scrolled across my phone screen like a blade cutting through sleep.

No photos, No witnesses. Just a short statement from the prison board calling it an apparent suicide.

I read it twice.

Then again.

And the third time, I laughed low, bitter, disbelieving.

“Suicide?” I muttered to myself. “That’s neat, Too neat.”

The world outside my window was still black and ...