Alisson walked over and tapped the screen. She saw the familiar face on the monitor and immediately pressed the unlock button. The heavy, armored steel door clicked open.

A man walked into the foyer. He wore a bespoke navy suit. His posture was elegant, but his eyes carried the sharp, dangerous edge of a predator. It was Hilary Strong, her adoptive brother and the most powerful weapon in her arsenal.

Hilary smiled as Janna ran up to him. He affectionately ruffled her hair, then walked over to Alisson. His expression turned serious as he handed her a heavy, encrypted black hard drive.

Alisson took the drive. They walked over to the floor-to-ceiling windows, putting distance between themselves and the twins, who were now watching cartoons on the sofa.

"The Lucas Corporation didn't go bankrupt five years ago," Hilary said, his voice low. "Iman Lucas used Bella's engagement to Jake Yates as collateral. He leveraged the Yates name to secure massive loans and aggressively acquired three of his competitors. Their market value has doubled."

Alisson let out a cold laugh. She plugged the encrypted drive into her secure terminal on the side table. Instantly, spreadsheets and financial records flooded the screen.

The data was damning. It showed illegal tax evasion, bribery, and fraudulent shell companies.

"If you move against the Lucas family now," Hilary warned, watching her face, "you are indirectly attacking the Yates family. Jake Yates does not tolerate anyone messing with his assets. It is a highly dangerous game in Aethelburg."

Alisson's eyes turned to ice. She stared at the city lights below.

"They burned me alive, Hilary," Alisson said, her voice a deadly whisper. "I don't care if Jake Yates thinks he is God. I am going to tear the Lucas family apart, piece by piece, and I will collect every single drop of blood they owe me."

Hilary sighed, knowing there was no stopping her. He changed the subject.

"The dark web is buzzing," Hilary noted, watching her reaction. "Ten million dollars for Dr. Cici. Are you sure you don't want to take the job? It would instantly drain a massive chunk of Yates' liquid cash."

"No," Alisson rejected the idea without a second of hesitation. "His money is dirty. I want nothing to do with any man who lets Bella Lucas into his bed."

Across the room, Jovany was walking toward the kitchen with his empty juice glass.

His sharp ears caught the names "Jake Yates" and "Bella."

Jovany did not break his stride. He put the glass in the sink, turned around, and walked quietly back to his bedroom. He shut the door and locked it with a soft click.

He walked over to his desk and woke up his multi-monitor hacker workstation.

His small fingers flew across the mechanical keyboard. He launched a custom web-crawler program he had written himself, directing it to scrape the deep web and public databases for everything related to Jake Yates.

Lines of green code cascaded down the black screens.

Two minutes later, a high-resolution image popped up on the center monitor. It was a digital cover of a top-tier financial magazine.

The man on the cover had a sharp, chiseled jawline, deep-set dark eyes, and an aura of absolute, terrifying authority. It was Jake Yates.

Jovany stared at the screen. His brows pulled together.

He opened his top drawer and pulled out a small hand mirror. He held it up next to his face, looking back and forth between his own reflection and the man on the monitor.

Except for the shape of his eyes, which he inherited from his mother, his jawline, the bridge of his nose, and the cold, unyielding expression were an exact, miniature replica of the man on the screen.

Jovany's heart began to beat faster against his ribs.

He quickly typed another command, hacking into the public relations schedule of the Yates Corporation.

A calendar event flashed on the screen. Tomorrow night. The Waldorf Hotel. A grand engagement banquet for Jake Yates and Bella Lucas.

Jovany unlocked his bedroom door and pulled Janna inside.

He pointed to the magazine cover on the screen.

"Janna," Jovany said, his voice dead serious. "I found him. This man is highly likely the 'scumbag daddy' we have been looking for."

Janna gasped. Her little hands balled into fists, her cheeks puffing out in anger.

"He is going to marry the bad woman?" Janna whispered fiercely. "No! We cannot let him. We have to go steal our daddy back!"

Out in the living room, Hilary was preparing to leave. He reached into his inner jacket pocket and pulled out an elegant, black envelope with gold lettering. He handed it to Alisson.

"An anonymous VIP invitation to tomorrow night's engagement banquet at the Waldorf," Hilary said. "Iman Lucas is planning to use the event to announce the hostile takeover of your old design firm. They are trying to keep it quiet until the ink is dry."

Alisson gripped the heavy cardstock of the invitation. A predatory thrill shot through her veins.

"Perfect," Alisson said, her lips curving into a dangerous smile. "I will go deliver my congratulations in person."

After Hilary left, Alisson walked into her master bedroom. She opened her massive walk-in closet and bypassed the conservative business suits.

She pulled out a striking, aggressive, fiery red evening gown with a plunging V-neckline.

She sat at her vanity mirror, staring at her reflection. She was no longer the naive, helpless girl from five years ago. Her face was sharper, her eyes harder. She clenched her fists until her nails dug into her palms. Tomorrow, the war begins.

Down the hall, inside the locked bedroom, Jovany had already bypassed the Waldorf Hotel's external firewall.

He pulled up the digital blueprints of the hotel's security camera network. He began charting a blind-spot infiltration route from the underground parking garage to the grand ballroom. He synced a pair of micro-communication earpieces.

Night fell over Manhattan.

Inside the silent apartment, a mother and her two children sat in their respective rooms, each secretly preparing to unleash absolute chaos upon the exact same engagement banquet tomorrow night.

Chapter 6

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