Chapter 1
The champagne glass slipped from Mara Ellis's fingers and shattered against the marble floor, drawing every eye in the charity gala toward her. She smiled before anyone could question the accident.
“I'm so sorry,” Mara said, lowering her gaze as security approached, her voice soft with embarrassment. “I think someone bumped into me.”
The nearest guard relaxed when he saw her harmless expression, while Mara quietly stepped backward, already calculating the seconds she had before attention returned to the crowded ballroom.
“You should be more careful,” the guard warned, gesturing toward the broken glass. “Mr. Blackwell doesn't tolerate disruptions tonight.”
Mara gave him an apologetic smile, keeping her hands folded innocently before her. “You're absolutely right. I'll be careful.”
The guard turned away, satisfied, and Mara's expression changed instantly. She crossed the ballroom without hurry, moving toward the wealthy businessman whose identity she had spent days studying.
Mr. Blackwell stood surrounded by investors, politicians, and admirers, his expensive suit hiding the confidential information Mara needed. She stopped beside him, adjusting the bracelet around her wrist.
“Mr. Blackwell, your speech was impressive,” Mara said warmly, offering the polished smile that had opened countless doors. “Especially your comments about protecting charitable investments.”
Blackwell looked pleased by the compliment, his attention settling fully on her. “You know something about investments?”
“Enough to know when someone understands them,” Mara replied, tilting her head with practiced interest. “Though I suspect you understand considerably more than I do.”
His smile widened.
“You're being modest,” he said, clearly enjoying the attention. “Have we met before?”
Mara touched her glass lightly against his, keeping her expression relaxed. “I don't think so. But I'm glad we have now.”
For several minutes, she kept him talking while her attention remained divided between his words and the security details around them. Every movement had been planned before she entered the room.
“You're certainly confident,” Blackwell observed, studying her curiously. “What exactly do you do?”
Mara laughed softly, allowing a hint of mystery into her expression. “I help people make difficult decisions.”
“That sounds vague.”
“Only because the interesting decisions usually are.”
He laughed, completely distracted.
When Blackwell glanced toward an approaching guest, Mara used the moment. Her fingers moved quickly, silently retrieving the information she needed from the access device he had carelessly left within reach.
The transfer took seconds.
Mara returned everything exactly where she had found it, lifting her champagne glass as though she had never touched anything else.
“Excuse me,” she said, stepping away gracefully. “I promised someone I would say hello.”
Blackwell watched her leave, amused rather than suspicious.
“Will I see you again?” he called after her.
Mara looked over her shoulder, letting her smile linger just long enough to keep him interested.
“Perhaps.”
She disappeared into the crowd before he could ask anything else.
Outside the ballroom, Mara entered a quiet corridor and finally allowed herself to breathe. She checked the information she had stolen, confirming that everything she needed was there.
Her phone vibrated.
Elias.
Mara answered immediately, lowering her voice as she leaned against the wall.
“You're calling early,” she said, glancing toward the ballroom doors. “I finished the job.”
Elias's voice remained calm on the other end. “I know.”
Mara frowned, folding her arms. “Then why are you calling?”
“Because I have something for you,” Elias replied. “Your final job.”
She straightened slowly.
“My final job?”
“Yes,” he said. “After this one, you're done.”
Mara looked through the glass doors at the glittering crowd, then down at the stolen information in her hand. For years, every lie had been another step deeper into a life she wanted to escape.
“How much?” she asked.
“Enough.”
“That isn't a number, Elias.”
“Enough for you to disappear,” he answered firmly. “Enough to start clean.”
Mara's fingers tightened around her phone. A clean life. The words struck harder than they should have.
“Who is the target?” she asked.
“Adrian Vale.”
Mara went still. She knew the name. Everyone did.
Adrian Vale was the notoriously private billionaire CEO of Vale International, a man whose wealth made headlines but whose personal life remained almost impossible to penetrate.
“What's the job?” she asked, her curiosity sharpening.
“You enter his life,” Elias said. “Gain his trust. Access one confidential corporate file. Then disappear.”
Mara stared at the city lights beyond the corridor windows.
“And that's all?”
“That is all.”
She considered the offer. Money could buy distance. It could buy silence. More importantly, it could buy an ending to the life she had spent years surviving.
“I'll do it,” Mara said quietly.
Elias paused before answering. “I knew you would.”
The call ended.
Minutes later, Mara sat alone in the back of a waiting car, studying the photograph Elias had sent her. Adrian Vale stared back from the screen, dressed in a dark suit, his expression controlled and unreadable.
Mara enlarged the photograph, studying his face.
“He trusts almost nobody,” she murmured, remembering the information Elias had provided.
That made him difficult. She should have been annoyed. Instead, the corner of her mouth lifted slightly. It also made him interesting.
She looked at Adrian's photograph one last time before locking her phone and preparing to leave. Then Elias's warning returned through the phone as his voice came again.
“Whatever you do, don't let Adrian Vale learn your real name.”
Mara froze. Her fingers tightened around the phone. Even Elias Ward had never known her real name.