Chapter #7

((Zara Lang))

It was Friday morning, and I was still in the same spot.

I sat in the passenger seat of Danny's Jeep, my eyes fixed on the towering headquarters of White Wolf Holdings.

Danny let out a long sigh.

“You're about to burn a hole through that building, Z,” he said sarcastically.

I blinked. Danny and I had been watching the company for three days now. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Everything operated just like any other major corporation.

“Are you sure this company is connected to Reins Eiser?” I murmured.

“If you're asking me, my answer is I don't know. I'm only here because this was your idea, remember?”

Danny started grumbling again. All he'd told me was that every victim had some kind of connection to Double W.

I was the one who jumped to the conclusion that they had to be involved, just like Eiser.

“Zara, I know I'm your subordinate, but acting on nothing but intuition isn't exactly how we do things.”

I knew that.

The truth was, I just couldn't let go of my frustration over failing to catch Eiser.

I had been so close. I almost had him. But because of one careless mistake, he slipped away and tossed me aside like I was nothing. This case had become an obsession. No matter what it took, I was going to bring Reins Eiser down.

I let out a heavy sigh.

“I need to get inside and find out if there's anything useful,” I said, pointing at the high-rise building.

Danny exhaled in resignation.

“You're going to do it whether I stop you or not. Fine. Let me get something for you.”

He climbed out of the Jeep and rummaged through the trunk before pulling out a black duffel bag. Carrying it back to the front seat, he unzipped it.

“Camera glasses." He handed me a pair of thin-framed glasses. "These can record videos without anyone getting suspicious. Just blink twice to activate the camera.”

I took them and slipped them on.

Danny wasn't finished. He pulled out an ordinary-looking pen and a tiny earpiece.

“This is a recorder,” he said, holding up the pen before handing me the earpiece. “Wear this too. I'll be monitoring you from a distance.”

A grin spread across my face.

“You actually prepared all this? I'm impressed.”

“I learned my lesson after what happened last time. You disappeared from the bar without a word, then called me from the hotel. Z, you know how dangerous that was.”

The worry in his voice was unmistakable. For a moment, he sounded like an overprotective father.

Danny shot me a warning look.

“Don't do anything stupid again.”

A mischievous smile tugged at my lips.

“Got it, Daddy.”

He nodded.

“You'd better mean it.”

After putting on all the equipment Danny had given me, I got out of the Jeep in a narrow alley not far from White Wolf Holdings and headed toward the building.

When I glanced back, Danny had already moved the Jeep closer. He gave me a nod from behind the steering wheel.

Taking a steadying breath, I walked inside.

My first stop was the company lobby.

I settled onto one of the sofas, picked up a random magazine from a nearby rack, and pretended to read while quietly observing every corner of the room.

Everything looked perfectly normal.

Until someone stepped out of the elevator.

Reins Eiser.

My eyes widened in shock.

I hadn't even seen him enter the building. Danny and I had been staking this place out for three days.

So the question was…

How did he get in?

“I'm not imagining this, am I, Z?” Danny's voice came through my earpiece.

“No. You're seeing exactly what I'm seeing, Dan. That's Reins Eiser.”

“I'm going after him.”

“Z, don't do anything reckless!”

Danny's warning echoed through the earpiece, but this time I barely heard him.

I fell into step behind Eiser.

He wasn't alone.

Two men walked beside him. One looked slightly older, while the other was someone I recognized immediately—Reins Eiser's personal assistant, Reynald Tucker. I met him at the bar that night.

I tried to remember who the older man was.

Then it hit me.

Lucas Stone.

The leader of Double W.

Oh my God... they're really connected?

***