“I “My voice faltered. “I protected Sylvie because of
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screw with someone, come after me, not her.”
The man on the other end actually laughed. A low,
amused chuckle. “Asher Renner. Finally. I was beginning to think you weren’t going to call.”
“Cut the bullshit. You took her.”
“No,” he said calmly. “Your sister came to me on her own. Offered herself up as our youngest chemist. Seems she was looking for a career change.”
His words hit like a brick to the chest. “She–what?”
“Didn’t she tell you?” he asked lightly. “Strange. I’d think family would know these things.”
“You’re lying.”
“Mr. Renner, even if we’re not business partners, you should know–I don’t lie. And I especially don’t appreciate being called a liar.”
My mind was reeling.
Kaia joined the Ormans? Why?
“Why…?” I didn’t even realize I’d said it aloud.
Adam sounded almost bored now. “I heard that you’ve treated her like shit for years. Ignored her. Replaced her. Let another girl wear her place at the table, take the attention that was supposed to be hers.”
My jaw clenched. “That’s not true.
“Isn’t it?”
“I-” My voice faltered. “I protected Sylvie because of
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Kaia.”
I’d never told anyone. Never explained the letters we received, the anonymous threats.
Treat Sylvie well or the cops find out everything.
I could’ve taken the fall. Hell, I was ready to.
But Kaia? She deserved more. A clean record. A future. One untouched by the shadows of what we did to survive.
If we went down, she’d go with us—whether she was guilty or not.
I couldn’t let that happen. I wouldn’t.
“She’s my sister,” I said under my breath. “I made a promise to protect her.”
And somehow… she thought I’d forgotten. That I’d
broken it.
And maybe, without meaning to, I had.
“If you have no further business,” Adam Orman said coolly, “I’ll have to end the call now, Mr. Renner. Hope you enjoy the rest of your day.”
“Wait!” I snapped. “Please—” The word caught in my throat. My first time begging. For anything.
“Please… let me speak to Kaia. You can have whatever you want. Just… let me talk to her.”
A pause.
Then, “I’m afraid that’s not possible. She’s signed her contract. As of now, Kaia Renner is part of the Orman
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Group. For life. No contact with outsiders. No phone calls. No exceptions.”
I went still. Silent.
He wasn’t lying. I knew it. Because our world–the one Kaia and I were born into–didn’t deal in half–measures. When someone joined a syndicate like the Ormans or the Renners, they signed away their life, their past and their
name.
Our business didn’t forgive mistakes. And it certainly didn’t tolerate loose ends.
As if twisting the knife, Adam added, “She told me she called you. The day she arrived.”
“What?” My breath hitched. “No. She never-”
“She did. I watched her. She looked nervous. You even answered, didn’t you? It was last Thursday. Around dinner?”
Then Adam hang up the phone.
Last Thursday…
We were in France. Sylvie had insisted on barbecue, so we rented a house with a garden. I’d been running around- grilling meat, setting tables, checking reservations. I told Sylvie to keep an eye on my phone, just in case. Told her to let me know if there were any calls.
But she never said anything.
She never told me.
My blood went cold.
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Did Sylvie… hide the call? And if she did… what else had she kept from me?
Before I could follow the thought, the front door opened.
Noah had returned.
He’d flown straight back after we landed in New York, skipping the mansion entirely. And now, as I watched him cross the hallway and disappear into his room, I found myself hesitating.
If I told him now… if I told him that Kaia was gone forever
I knocked. “Noah?” My voice was quieter than I meant it to be. “I have to tell you something.”
He opened the door–and pulled me in without a word.
“I heard something,” he said, voice tight. He couldn’t even look me in the eye. “Something awful.”
My stomach turned. “Is it about Kaia?”
He nodded once. “She left the day we flew to France. Took a ferry to Mexico. Brought James with her. What the hell did she go to Mexico for?”
“She’s with the Ormans,” I said quietly.
Noah’s eyes widened in disbelief. “The fucking Ormans?”
His voice cracked. I’d never seen Noah panic. Not even when we buried our parents. But now? He looked like the ground had dropped out beneath him.
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