ouldn't

eavy with unanswered questions. Her phone buzzed again, and sh

ow

pers curling through the marble walls. She'd been here only a handful of times, yet to

steady as she made her way to the elevator. It ping

they knew something that

go to protect the fragile threads of his vengeance. Elena still didn't know if s

, and she pressed the button for the top floor, where C

dimly lit by a few scattered lights. The silence was unnerving. There were no sou

us text. It led her past a few closed office doors, down a hallway so quiet that it made her skin crawl. Her bre

he pushed it. Inside, a fi

u c

taken precautions to hide their identity. A man. Strong, calm, ye

caught in

arkness where the figure stood. There was something almost mag

lights fl

lena

e who had a direct connection to her father. The last pers

lia

man who served Ares, the one who watched from the shad

pping back. "What the hel

with an undercurrent of something darker. "You're not he

ose in. Elena's mind raced. Julian was playing a

d, her tone sharp, despite t

n said, slowly crossing the room toward

"My role?" she repe

voice rising slightly. "You have no idea h

yes locked with hi

ftly. "But I'm ab

can handle the truth? It's not something you'll be able

eamed for her to turn and walk away to ig

he co

even though her pulse raced wildly

something unreadable. He stepped back and turned to a large,

it tow

"It's all in there. The answers you need. Everyth

ng the pages. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the names listed. Important people. Pow

oods-Ares's tr

Her vision blurred. She could har

ce cut throu

sn't just a traitor. He was part of a much bi

o understand. "This doesn't make

rstand the extent of the betrayal. Your father's sins run deeper than you realize. A

ck with tension. Elena's hands clench

king with both fury and fear,

your father built. Destroy his empire. And when it's do

psing. She wasn't sure if she could tr

speak again, Juli

he screen, his

yes narrowing. He looked at

fice, down the corridor, and toward the stairwell. The air a

h echoed do

r

as h