The night outside the Sterling penthouse was a deceptive cloak of calm. The city’s lights glimmered like distant stars, indifferent to the storm raging in the penthouse basement. Inside, however, every corner of the room thrummed with urgency and anticipation. Screens flickered with maps, addresses, bank accounts, and encrypted codes. Lucian’s full cooperation had transformed the basement into a war room — alive with a lethal, electric energy.

Ares stood over the central monitor, ...