Chapter 2 CHA

"Ten million dollars is a lot of money for a ghost, Mr. Thorne."

I kept my voice steady, though my stomach was a knotted mess of nerves. I sat on the edge of the mismatched sofa in my cramped apartment, my palms pressing into the threadbare fabric until the rough fibers bit into my skin. The air in the room was stagnant, smelling of old rain and the cheap detergent I used to scrub the grease from my uniforms.

"You aren't a ghost to him, Elena," the man across from me said. He looked entirely out of place in my world of peeling wallpaper and flickering fluorescent lights. His suit cost more than I had earned in the last five years combined. He watched me with eyes that were as cold and calculating as a spreadsheet.

"I'm a mistake he forgot before the sun came up," I countered. My heart hammered against my ribs, a frantic, uneven rhythm. I could feel a bead of sweat tracing a slow, agonizing path down the dip of my spine. I shifted, trying to hide the way my hands were trembling.

"Men like Jaxson Vane don't forget women like you," Thorne said, leaning forward. The scent of his expensive cologne was sharp, clashing with the metallic tang of the city outside. "Especially not after what you took from him."

"I took nothing," I snapped. The lie tasted like copper in my mouth. My throat burned, a sharp, dry heat that made it hard to swallow. I forced myself to look him in the eye, even as my vision blurred at the edges from the sheer weight of the pressure.

"You took his pride," Thorne replied smoothly. "And now, I want you to take his empire."

"By walking back into his life? He'll have me thrown out by his security before I can say hello."

"Not if you bring the boy."

The air left my lungs in a sudden, violent rush. My fingers curled into fists, my nails drawing blood from my palms. The pain was a sharp anchor, keeping me from screaming. I could hear the soft, rhythmic breathing of my son, Leo, sleeping in the next room-a sound that usually brought me peace, but now felt like a ticking clock.

"Leave my son out of this," I whispered, the words coming out as a jagged threat.

"He is the perfect weapon, Elena. Look at him. He's a carbon copy of the man who rules this city. Vane won't be able to look away. He is a man who values legacy above all else. When he sees those eyes-his eyes-on a child he never knew existed, he will be undone."

"I am not a spy anymore," I said, my voice trembling.

"You're a mother who can't pay her rent," Thorne sneered, his gaze sweeping over my meager belongings. "You're a woman who buys milk with loose change found in the cushions of this very couch. Don't play the saint with me. You are drowning, Elena. I am the only one offering you a way to the surface."

The truth hit me like a physical blow to the solar plexus. I felt a wave of nausea, my stomach churning with a mix of shame and desperation. He was right. The refrigerator was an empty cavern. Leo needed new shoes for school. I was drowning, and this shark was offering me a golden life jacket.

"Why do you hate him so much?" I asked, my voice barely audible over the hum of the old refrigerator.

"That's none of your concern. Your concern is the ten million. Five now. Five when he's ruined."

"Ruined? What exactly do you want me to do?"

"Infiltrate. Remind him of that night. Make him fall. Make him vulnerable. And when he's at his weakest, give me the access I need to his private servers. He has built a fortress of digital secrets, and you are the only one with the key to his emotional gate."

My skin crawled. The memory of Jaxson's hands on me, the heat of his skin, and the roar of his bike flashed through my mind like a fever dream. The sensation was so vivid I could almost smell the bourbon and burnt rubber. A shiver raced through my limbs, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake.

"He'll kill me if he finds out," I said.

"He'll love you until he loses everything. That's the Vane way."

Thorne stood up, pulling a thick envelope from his breast pocket. He tossed it onto the coffee table. It landed with a heavy thud-the sound of my soul being sold.

"Think about it, Elena. You have twenty-four hours." He walked to the door, his polished shoes clicking against the linoleum. He paused with his hand on the knob. "One more thing. Jaxson is throwing a gala tomorrow night at the Vane Plaza. If you aren't there, the offer expires. And I suspect your landlord's patience will expire shortly after."

The door clicked shut, leaving me in a silence so heavy it felt like it was crushing my lungs. I stared at the envelope. My heart was thudding so loudly in my ears I could barely hear myself think.

"Mama?"

The small voice from the doorway made me jump. I whipped my head around, my pulse racing. Leo stood there, rubbing his eyes with his small, chubby fists. He was wearing his favorite dinosaur pajamas, the ones that were two sizes too small. He looked so much like him. The same dark, unruly hair. The same set of his jaw. Even at five years old, he had that same piercing, obsidian gaze that had haunted my dreams for half a decade.

"Go back to sleep, baby," I said, my voice thick with unshed tears.

"Who was that man?" Leo asked, walking over to me. He climbed onto the sofa and tucked himself under my arm. His warmth was a stinging reminder of everything I had to protect.

"Just someone from work, Leo. Everything is fine."

"You're shaking," he whispered, his small hand patting my arm.

"I'm just cold," I lied. The cold was inside me. It was a frost that had settled in my marrow the moment I saw those two blue lines five years ago. I pulled him closer, breathing in the scent of baby shampoo and sleep.

"Are we going somewhere?" he asked, looking at the envelope.

"Maybe. Would you like to see a big party? With lots of lights?"

"Will there be cake?"

"Yes," I choked out. "There will be cake."

I waited until he fell back asleep in my arms before I reached for the envelope. My fingers felt numb as I tore it open. Inside were stacks of hundred-dollar bills, more money than I had ever held at once. And beneath the cash, there was a single photograph. It was a shot of Jaxson Vane leaving his office. He looked older, harder. The silver scar on his eyebrow was more prominent. He looked like a king who had forgotten how to smile.

The sight of him sent a jolt of electricity through my nervous system. It was a terrifying mix of attraction and pure, unadulterated dread. My skin felt tight, a prickling sensation spreading across my chest. I spent the rest of the night staring at that photo. Every time I closed my eyes, I felt the phantom weight of his body against mine. I remembered the way he had called me "Little Thief."

I wasn't a thief anymore. I was a ghost coming back to haunt him.

The next evening, the transformation was complete. Thorne had sent a stylist, a dress, and a car. I looked in the mirror and didn't recognize the woman staring back. The silk of the emerald-green gown felt like cool water against my skin, but beneath it, I was burning. My heart felt like it was trying to claw its way out of my throat. I checked my reflection one last time, smoothing the fabric over my hips. I looked expensive. I looked dangerous. I looked like the kind of woman a man would destroy himself for.

"Ready, Leo?" I asked.

He was dressed in a tiny tuxedo, looking every bit the prince. He beamed at me, his eyes wide with wonder. "You look like a queen, Mama."

"And you look like a hero," I said, though my voice wavered.

The drive to Vane Plaza was a blur of neon and anxiety. Every time the car stopped at a light, I felt like jumping out and running until my lungs gave out. My palms were so slick I had to wipe them on a silk handkerchief. The plaza was a monolith of glass and steel, glowing like a beacon in the center of the city. As we stepped out of the car, the flashes of paparazzi cameras blinded me. I felt the familiar rush of adrenaline-the spy's high-but it was tempered by the crushing weight of the secret I carried.

"Stay close to me," I whispered to Leo.

We entered the ballroom, a cavern of gold leaf and crystal chandeliers. The air was thick with the scent of lilies and expensive perfume. I scanned the room, my eyes searching for the one person I both longed for and feared.

And then I saw him.

He was standing on the far side of the room, surrounded by a circle of men in dark suits. He was holding a glass of bourbon, the amber liquid catching the light. He looked exactly the same, yet entirely different. The power radiating off him was palpable, a physical force that made the air around him seem to vibrate. My breath hitched. My heart stopped, then restarted with a violent, jarring thud. I felt a wave of heat wash over me, followed by a bone-deep chill.

He looked up. His eyes swept across the room with a bored indifference until they landed on me.

I watched the moment the recognition hit him. It was like watching a dam break. His body went rigid. The glass in his hand tilted precariously. The obsidian voids of his eyes narrowed, zeroing in on me with a predatory intensity that made my knees buckle. He didn't move. He just stared, his chest rising and falling in heavy, rhythmic heaves. The silence between us stretched, a taut wire humming with five years of unspoken questions and raw, bleeding wounds.

I felt Leo tug on my hand. "Mama, why is that man looking at us like that?"

Jaxson's gaze dropped. He saw the boy.

I watched the color drain from his face, leaving him a ghastly shade of pale. The bourbon glass slipped from his fingers, shattering on the marble floor with a sound like a gunshot. The amber liquid splashed over his expensive shoes, but he didn't blink. He started toward us, his stride long and purposeful. People parted like the Red Sea before him. Each of his footsteps echoed in my skull, a countdown to a confrontation I wasn't sure I could survive.

"Elena," he said. His voice was deeper than I remembered, a low, guttural growl that sent a tremor through my entire body. I felt the electricity of his presence, a charge that made the fine hairs on my neck stand up.

"Jaxson," I replied, my voice surprisingly steady. "It's been a long time."

He stopped a few feet away, his eyes darting between me and the boy. He looked like he had been struck by lightning. His hands were clenched at his sides, the knuckles white.

"Who is he?" Jaxson demanded, his voice a harsh whisper that cut through the music of the string quartet.

I looked him dead in the eye, feeling a sudden, sharp surge of defiance. The underdog was finally standing her ground. "His name is Leo," I said, my voice ringing out clearly. "And he's the reason I'm going to take everything you have left."

The shock on his face was the most satisfying thing I had ever seen. For the first time in his life, the Great Jaxson Vane looked small.

But then, a shadow fell over us. I turned to see Thorne standing behind me, a thin, triumphant smile on his lips. He leaned in close, his voice a cold venom in my ear.

"Well done, Elena. Now, tell him the rest. Tell him that if he doesn't sign over the merger by midnight, he'll never see his son again-because I've already called the authorities to report an international kidnapping."

My heart plummeted into my stomach. I looked at Thorne, then back at Jaxson, the realization hitting me like a physical blow. I wasn't here to win. I was the bait in a trap that was about to snap shut on both of us.

"You used me," I whispered, the words tasting like ash.

"I hired you," Thorne corrected. "Now finish the job, or the boy goes to a cage you'll never find."

I looked at Jaxson, and for the first time, I saw not the enemy, but the only person who could help me save our son. "Jaxson," I breathed, reaching out to touch his arm. "Run."

But before he could react, the heavy oak doors of the ballroom burst open, and a swarm of armed men in tactical gear flooded the room. The transition from luxury to war was instantaneous. Jaxson didn't hesitate. He grabbed my waist and pulled me behind him, his body a shield of muscle and fury.

"Nobody touches them," Jaxson roared, his voice shaking the chandeliers.