(Kira’s POV)
__________
I sat on my bed for a long ti, barely moving. My head rested between my hands as I thought about what to do next. Every option felt risky, and I knew I had to be careful. I couldn’t give in to Maven—not yet. If I had more ti, I was sure I could figure out who he really was. Once I had that information, I could find a way to fight back.
But the truth was, I had no idea just how far this guy was willing to go. What if he went to the press? That thought sent a chill through . It wouldn’t take much to start a scandal—just one picture of Lena entering my hotel room and another of her leaving. That alone would be enough to set the dia on fire. Reporters would start digging into my past, pulling out every friendship I’ve ever had with a woman, twisting them into stories that weren’t true.
I couldn’t let that happen. I wouldn’t. Especially not to Lena. If people found out about us, her entire career could be destroyed. She had worked too hard to get where she was, and one scandal could ruin everything. Her reputation would take a hit, and other employers would see her as a liability. No one would want to hire a personal assistant who had been caught in a scandal with the rival—or worse, with her boss’s fiancé.
It wasn’t just about anymore. If I made the wrong move, Lena would pay the price, and that was sothing I wasn’t willing to let happen.
I heard another buzz from my phone, causing to turn to it. It was yet another ssage from Maven and it read;
"Do Not Ignore ! You better answer within a minute or I swear the world would know about your little tryst with Lena Maitland."
I grabbed my phone, my fingers hovering over the screen, ready to fire back a furious reply. My pulse pounded in my ears, anger clawing its way up my throat. I wanted to lash out, to tell Maven exactly what I thought of him, to rip through his smug confidence with words sharp enough to cut.
But I stopped myself—just in ti.
A reckless response could make everything worse. And right now, that was the last thing I needed. Maven had the upper hand, and he knew it. He was playing a ga, setting the board just the way he wanted, and I was the piece being moved. That thought alone sent a wave of frustration through , but I forced myself to take a breath. I couldn’t afford to lose control, not when he was waiting for to make a mistake.
No, I had to be smart. Careful.
For now, I had to let him believe he was winning. Let him think he was the one in control, the mastermind pulling the strings. I needed to be patient, to wait for my mont. Because when the ti was right, when he finally slipped up, I would be ready.
And when that mont ca, I wouldn’t just take back control.
I would destroy him.
So, sucking in a deep breath, I typed in my response:
"What do you want?"
"Why did you ignore ?" He replied imdiately.
And I fired back my response, "I’m here now, what the fuck do you want?"
At that mont, I was ready to do whatever he demanded. It didn’t matter what it was—I had no other choice. The walls were closing in, and I knew that if I didn’t play this right, I could lose everything.
I braced myself for what was coming. Blackmailers always wanted money—it was the simplest form of leverage. But the real question was: how much did he want? And more importantly, how did he want it?
If he asked for a wire transfer, that would be my best chance. Money moved digitally always left a trail, and with the right tools, I could follow it straight to whoever was hiding behind the na "Maven." It would give sothing to work with, a lead to chase. But if he asked for cash... that was a different story.
Cash disappeared. No trace. No clues. No way to track him down. If he was smart—and I had no doubt that he was—he’d know that too.
A sick feeling curled in my gut.
I wasn’t just dealing with so desperate nobody looking for quick money. This was sothing bigger, sothing calculated. And the worst part?
I had no idea what I was walking into.
Whatever it was though, I was ready for it.
His response ca a few minutes later;
"You seem to be thinking that I’m working against you. Believe , I’m not. I’m doing this so that you and I both get what we want. Wouldn’t you like that?"
I felt anger boil up within as I typed in my reply, "How the hell do you know what I want?"
"Because I know you better than you think, Kira. You’d be surprised at how much I know about you. But that’s not the matter at hand right now. What is most important is what you’re going to do for ."
"That’s what you’ve been saying for the past few minutes now," I replied. "I’m sick and tired of this. Are you ready to tell or what?"
"Fine... I need you to go to Parallel City tomorrow."
"What?" I demanded. "To do what?"
"Hey... you might wanna exercise so patience, okay? Stop fucking rushing !"
"TALK TO GODDANMIT!!!" I typed the ssage all in caps to let him know just how furious I was.
"You’re going shopping tomorrow, and you’ll of course buy them with your money. I’ll send you the exact mall I need you to go to."
"I’m not here for you to send around, okay? I’m not your fucking errand girl!"
"You are what I say you are, girl!" Maven replied, his tone sounding saucy even though I was reading it over text. "And tomorrow morning, you’re going to the fucking mall to buy the fucking things I order you to."
I let out a slow, heavy sigh, raking my fingers through my hair as I stared at my phone. My stomach twisted into a tight knot. What the hell had I gotten myself into? How long was I going to be tangled up with this bastard? And what exactly was he planning to make do?
Weapons? Drugs? Smuggled goods? Was he using to move weight, knowing damn well that my influence would let slip past checkpoints without raising suspicion?
The thought made my skin crawl.
"Fuck!" I hissed under my breath, squeezing my eyes shut as I fell back onto the bed. Every part of scread that this was wrong. So, so wrong. Nothing about this situation felt like it could end well. Maven wasn’t just so low-level blackmailer looking for a quick payout—he had a plan, and I was at the center of it. I knew damn well that if I followed his lead, I’d only sink deeper into a pit I might never climb out of.
But what choice did I have?
We still had no idea who Maven really was. Not . Not Casey. Not Jace. If they’d uncovered anything, they would have told by now. But we were in the dark, and I didn’t have the luxury of waiting until we figured it out.
That footage of Lena entering my hotel room was a loaded gun aid right at my head. One slip, one wrong move, and everything I had built would go up in flas. And worse—Lena would burn with . I couldn’t let that happen.
So, my plan remained the sa. Keep Maven thinking he had control. Let him believe I was nothing more than a puppet, following his orders. For now, that ant playing along.
But he had no idea what was coming. Because the second I saw my chance?
I’d turn the ga against him. And I’d make damn sure he never saw it coming.
So, with a great reluctance, I replied to him; "fine, you win. What happens when I buy the stuff?"
"I’ll give you an address to take it to. Just make up your mind that co tomorrow, you’ll be going to Parallel City. You’re going alone and don’t bother calling anyone. Because it won’t matter. I’ll have eyes on you at all tis and if you dare do anything funny, you and Lena’s faces will be plastered all over the news and blogs before nightfall."
I stared at his text, he was trying to take charge and let know that he was the boss.
"So, what exactly am I buying? You’re not having get anything illegal, are you?"
"LOL!" That was the only reply he gave and then he went offline.
"Co back here, you bastard!" I scread as I threw the phone to the bed. "What do you want from ?!"
The minute I made the outburst, I regretted it at once. I heard footsteps pounding towards the door and soon, it flew open with a bang as Lena burst in looking frightened!
"KIRA!" She cried, "Are you okay? I heard you scream!"
She looked at , then her eyes dropped to the phone lying on the bed. My heart slamd against my ribs. Maven’s text was still on the screen.
She was going to see it.
She was going to read everything.
And then, she would know.
"Oh shit..." I muttered. "I was fucked!"
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