Chapter 510
Chapter 510:
“Impossible. The codes change daily p>
“The root algorithm doesn’t,” Skye bluffed. “It’s based on the Fibonacci sequence offset by the date. I can calculate it p>
Lucian stared at her. He didn’t believe her completely. But he wanted to live.
“Tell me the code p>
“No,” Skye said. “I type it. And in exchange, we make a deal p>
“A deal?” Lucian laughed. “You’re bargaining for your life p>
“No. I’m bargaining for power p>
Skye stepped closer to him. She put her hand on the gun barrel and lowered it.
“I help you destroy the Moretti family,” she said. “I give you the files on Isabella Moretti’s offshore accounts—the ones I found while digging for Oracle. I ruin her. And you… you make me a partner. A real partner. Fifty-fifty in the new venture p>
Lucian looked at her. He saw the ambition in her eyes. It mirrored his own.
“You have Isabella’s files p>
“I have everything,” Skye said, tapping her temple. “Digital copies. I can access them remotely once we are out p>
Lucian holstered the gun.
He grabbed her face and kissed her. It wasn’t romantic. It was a seal on a contract written in blood.
“Type the code,” he commanded.
Skye walked to the keypad on the inside of the door. She prayed William’s device had reset the lock to the default factory setting, the way she needed it to.
She typed: 0-0-0-0.
The bolts retracted. The door swung open.
Lucian looked at her with new respect. And hunger.
“Partner,” he said.
The “partnership” began immediately.
Lucian didn’t take her back to the cell. He took her to the Master Suite. He gave her a phone—monitored, of course—and a wardrobe of designer clothes.
“Tonight,” Lucian said, fastening platinum cufflinks, “we celebrate. The Casino Gala is still happening. We cannot show weakness. The Morettis will be there, expecting to hear that I am dead or ruined p>
𝗦𝘵𝗼𝗿іe𝘴 𝘁𝗵a𝗍 w𝗂𝘭l 𝗵𝗈𝗈𝗄 𝘺𝗼𝘶 𝗼𝗇 𝖻еlո𝘰𝗏еls.𝗰𝗼m
“And?” Skye asked, applying red lipstick in the mirror.
“And you will be on my arm,” Lucian said. “Wearing the biggest diamond in the vault. I want Isabella Moretti to see that not only did she fail to kill you, but you have replaced her as the queen of this city p>
It was a cruel game. But Skye played along. She needed access to the gala. She needed to pass the intel to William.
While Lucian was in the shower, Skye moved quickly. She went to the bathroom vanity and unscrewed the handle of the decorative hairbrush. The hidden USB drive—the one Alistair had given her in the tunnel—slid out into her hand. She slipped it into her small, beaded clutch, burying it beneath a compact and a tube of lipstick.
She met Lucian in the foyer. He was dressed in a tuxedo, looking every inch the kingpin.
“The evidence,” Lucian said, extending a hand. “You said you could access it p>
Skye reached into her clutch. She didn’t pull out the worm drive. Instead, she pulled out a small SD card she had removed from her phone earlier—one containing encrypted logs she had compiled during her initial investigation into the Morettis.
“A gesture of good faith,” Skye said, placing the SD card in his palm. “Isabella’s laundering routes. It’s enough to get the FBI interested p>
Lucian inspected the card, then slipped it into his jacket pocket. “Excellent p>
The gala was held in the Crystal Ballroom, which had been spared from the fire. It was an ocean of tuxedos and gowns, though the smell of smoke still lingered faintly in the air.