Chapter 1 The Thief in the Night

To me, the night always seemed alive; every shadow served as a hiding spot, and every pulse warned.

I was the thief, whose name had become a whispered tale at both the police station and the underground.

I was not just any burglar. I didn't care much about the publicity. Every theft-every deliberate action-served the interests of my pack. Families.

Tonight, was much like other evenings.

Slung on the brink of a high-rise building, the city opened out like a map of possibilities. I bent. The benevolent elite was mixing in their sparkling gowns and fitted suits, and the gala was in full flow underneath, unaware of the predator hovering overhead.

I replaced the black leather gloves on my hands, my enhanced senses picking up bits of laughter and clinking glasses in the evening air.

Tonight the daughter of the police chief was here.

Maria Hart.

I shouldn't have cared. She presented a complication I could not afford. Still, I knew I would spot her anywhere. Even from a distance, she was unusual, sharp, demanding, and a bit too driven for her own good. That type of fire was seductive, even though I knew it would burn me.

"Focus," I said under my breath, rejecting the idea as I looked down at the floor. My intended goal was not her. Tonight, it was something considerably more physical-a key card kept in the rear office of the gala site. Without it, Cain, my competitor, would have an advantage that I cannot tolerate.

Like a vulture seeking any vulnerability, Cain had been circling my pack. He would have destroyed everything I had created with one slip-up and one error.

I cannot let it pass by.

The falling was flawless. Sliding in via an unlocked maintenance window, I ascended the side of the building. Thick walls and heavy doors muted the noise of the event, and the world became silent. With delicate feet and steady breathing, I walked like a ghost.

However, even a ghost could not be perfect.

The sound of approaching heels stopped me mid-step. My pulse quickened, and as I slipped into the darkness, my muscles tightened.

She turned up.

Elena.

She had a profound impact on me. Her emerald-green dress draped her body in a way that made her appear both untouchable and dangerously close, her dark hair exquisitely twisted. Her keen eyes swept the hall, and for a second I feared she may have seen me.

She lacked, nevertheless.

She continued to stroll with assured motions and a high head. I almost laughed bitterly as my chest tightened. She had not been invited here. I wasn't meant to see her.

The scheme did not include this.

I waited until her heels stopped, then crept inside the office. Tucked within a sleek metal drawer, the key card was precisely where my information had said it would be. Simple.

Otherwise, it ought to have been.

I felt it-a change in the air, a warning prickling down my spine-the instant I touched it.

"freezes!"

As I turned, my keen sense of escape routes fully calculated, I came across Elena Hart, her green eyes now ablaze with rage. As I turned, my keen sense of escape routes fully calculated, I came across Elena Hart, her green eyes now ablaze with rage. Her posture remained constant as she clutched a stun gun in one hand.

Who the fuck are you?Her voice was low but forceful; she insisted.

I may have started to lie. I could have enchanted my path out. Rather, I grinned, a cocky edge creeping into my voice. Just a crook passing by.

Her stare sharpened, and for a moment I believed she may really shoot. She moved closer instead, her voice bursting with power. "What do you think you have just stepped into?"

For a brief moment, our conflict overshadowed everything else, including Cain, the pack, and the work. Even though I knew it would ruin me, all I could see was her, poised like a storm I wanted to swim into.

I softened my voice and added, "I could ask you the same thing." "Sweetheart, you're over your head."

Her jaw clenched at the term, and I nearly grinned. practically.

Before she could respond, the sound of approaching feet broke the moment. Strengthening elements Not tonight, not ever-you're not even able to afford to be caught.

My movements was swifter than she had expected. One hand sprang out, knocking the stun pistol from her hold, and the other softly but forcefully shoved her into the wall.

I apologized, my voice barely audible.

Then, I vanished like smoke into the evening.

Adrenaline continued to flow through me as I made my way back to the rooftop, peering down with the key card in hand. Achievements. However, my thoughts was not directed toward the task at hand. On her was they on.

Elena.

I had not just taken a key card tonight. I had snatched a moment with her and wasn't sure I would ever get it back.

Benevolently, oblivious to the chaos I had left behind, the gala continued below. However, I couldn't shake the feeling that tonight had set something uncontrollably in motion.

Something hazardous.