Chapter 10 - THE NEW CONTRACT
Aurora looked at him, her brow furrowed in deep suspicion. "What are you talking about?"
Owen stepped over the spilled cleaning solution, looking down at the broken lock on the oak door, then back at her.
"Tomorrow morning, I am reassigning you to my personal administrative detail," Owen declared, his eyes locking onto hers with absolute, unbreakable resolve. "You will sit in my private office. You will drive in my armored vehicles. You will be under my direct, personal guard twenty-four hours a day."
"I am not working for a murderer," Aurora spat, stepping forward on her carbon-fiber leg, her footfall sounding firm and solid against the tile floor.
"You aren't working for me," Owen replied softly, stepping closer until he stood directly in front of her. "You are going to help me destroy the men who put you in that river."
Aurora froze, staring up at the Chicago boss. The shadow of the accident from three years ago still hung between them, heavy with blood, crime, and painful secrets—but for the first time, the narrative had flipped.
"And when they're gone?" Aurora asked, her voice steady and sharp.
Owen looked down at the young woman who had survived his darkest crime, his expression unreadable as he reached out and gently opened the shattered door for her.
May you like
"When they're gone," Owen said, "you can decide whether to hand me over to the feds... or take over this house yourself."
Aurora adjusted the hem of her black uniform, held her chin high, and stepped past him into the marble hallway, her carbon-fiber leg striking the polished floor with a strong, rhythmic, and echoing beat that filled the quiet mansion.
