The Hidden Heiress: Tangled with Two Billionaire Kings

The rain had been falling since sunset, steady and unrelenting, drumming against the cracked windows of the old Miami penthouse like impatient fingers tapping a clock. Time was running out.

I stuffed the last of my things into the battered leather satchel - a handful of clothes, a fake ID, the forged scholarship letter I'd spent every cent I had to acquire. My heart thudded so hard I could feel it in my throat. Every tick of the dusty wall clock echoed in my skull. If I didn't leave now, I never would.

The elevator was broken again, so I took the stairs, moving quickly but trying not to make noise. My sneakers squeaked against the water pooling on the cracked cement. I knew he was in the building. He was always in the building.

Victor Kane.

Even thinking his name sent a cold rush through me. My guardian's fixer. The man who'd smiled while tearing apart the last scraps of my family's business. The man who'd stood beside me at my father's funeral with a hand on my shoulder and a lie on his tongue.

The lobby was dim, the overhead bulb flickering like it couldn't decide if it wanted to live or die. Outside, the streetlights were blurred halos in the rain, the air thick with the smell of diesel and wet pavement.

A bus was already idling at the corner. My bus. My way out.

I kept my head down, the brim of my hoodie shadowing my face, and hurried across the street. The driver barely glanced at my ticket before waving me inside. The warmth of the interior hit me all at once, fogging my vision for a second.

I slid into a seat halfway down the aisle, pressing my satchel against my side like I could hide my whole life in its worn leather folds. The bus hissed and lurched forward. I didn't look back.

New York. Sterling Academy. A clean slate.

The plan was simple: disappear into the marble halls of the elite, learn enough to vanish into the crowd, and never let anyone know who I really was.

The plan shattered less than an hour into the ride.

It started with a shadow falling across my lap. Then, the smell - expensive cologne laced with something sharp, metallic, almost predatory.

"Elena," a voice murmured from behind me.

The sound froze my spine.

I turned slowly.

Victor Kane stood in the aisle, rainwater dripping from the shoulders of his black coat. His hair was slicked back, his expression calm - too calm. His eyes, pale and cold, swept over me with the precision of a man cataloging a piece of property.

"You've grown," he said softly. "But you're still running the wrong way."

My grip tightened on my bag. "My name's Marina Vale," I said, the lie steady from months of practice.

He smiled, but it didn't touch his eyes. "You can change the name, little heiress. You can't change the blood."

The driver called for him to take a seat, but Victor didn't move. He leaned in, his breath warm and unsettling against my ear.

"The founder's blood will always call you home."

Then he straightened, gave me one last unreadable look, and walked off the bus.

I stayed frozen until the city lights of Miami were just a blur in the distance. My hands were shaking so badly I nearly dropped my phone when I pulled it out. One new message blinked on the cracked screen.

Unknown number.

We know where you're going.

I powered the phone off and shoved it deep in my bag.

The bus rumbled on through the rain, but the seat felt smaller now, the air tighter. Every face seemed sharper, every shadow deeper.

When sleep finally came, it was restless - my father's voice fading into the sound of rain, Victor's cold eyes staring through me, and the whisper of a world I'd sworn I'd never return to.

---

The sky over Manhattan was a flat, metallic gray when we pulled into the terminal the next morning. The air was cold and damp, the kind that slid under your clothes and settled in your bones.

Sterling Academy's welcome car was waiting - black, sleek, a private driver in a suit holding a sign with Marina Vale printed in perfect serif letters.

The ride to the Upper East Side was silent. I watched the city flash by - steel and glass, gold-trimmed awnings, streets slick with rain. Every turn felt like it was drawing me closer to something I couldn't name but could feel in my gut.

The academy was a palace disguised as a school. Tall white columns framed the entrance, and wide stone steps led up to gleaming glass doors. Inside, the lobby was all marble floors, crystal chandeliers, and soft lighting that made everyone look expensive.

I checked in, collected my schedule and dorm key, and was just about to escape toward the elevators when it happened.

I collided with a wall.

Except the wall was warm. And breathing.

I looked up into the sharp, assessing eyes of a man who looked like he'd been carved out of shadow and steel. Dark suit, darker tie, jaw like a blade. He was tall - too tall - and his presence made the air feel suddenly heavier.

"Watch where you're going," he said, voice deep, smooth, and as controlled as the cut of his suit.

"I-sorry-" I started, stepping back, but he caught my arm. Not hard, but firm.

His gaze swept over me like he was reading a document no one else could see. "You're new." It wasn't a question.

Before I could answer, another voice cut in - lighter, warmer, threaded with something dangerous.

"Damian," it drawled. "You're scaring her."

The man holding me - Damian - let go. I turned to see another figure leaning against the marble banister. This one was all easy smiles and tousled dark hair, dressed in a perfectly tailored jacket he wore like it was an afterthought.

"She ran into me," Damian said flatly.

"Or you blocked her path. Again." The new man's grin widened at my confusion. "Adrian Sterling. You must be the new scholarship student."

My stomach twisted. Sterling.

I forced a small smile. "Marina Vale."

Adrian's eyes lit, but there was a sharpness behind the charm. "Welcome to the academy, Marina."

Damian said nothing, but his gaze lingered as I slipped away toward the elevators.

The doors closed, and I exhaled for the first time since stepping inside.

Two brothers. Same last name as the empire I'd been running from my whole life.

And they'd both noticed me.