Chapter 17 CHAPTER SEVENTEEN**
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
SHATTERED ALLIANCES
ZARIAH NIGHTBORNE POV
"The Syndicate is bleeding money."
Damien spread financial reports across the conference table, his expression grim. We'd gathered in the compound's war room—me, Damien, Kael, Veda, and Elara—to discuss our next move.
"How much?" I asked, scanning the numbers.
"Fifteen million in the last quarter alone. Your escape, the cathedral incident, pack defections—it's all adding up. They're hemorrhaging resources trying to find you." Damien looked up. "But there's more. Lucien's made a deal with the High Council. He's offering something big in exchange for their support."
My stomach dropped. "What kind of something?"
"We don't know yet. But whatever it is, it's worth enough that the Council is willing to legitimize his claim as Alpha Don."
Kael pushed off the wall where he'd been leaning. "Which means he's planning something major. Something that requires Council backing."
"Or someone," Veda muttered darkly.
The implication hung heavy in the air.
"He's going to sell you," Elara said quietly, her face pale. "Isn't he? That's what this is about."
"The Luna Code," I said, the realization hitting like ice water. "He's going to auction off access to it. Mate me to the highest bidder and give them control over every pack."
Damien's jaw clenched. "We don't know that for certain."
"Don't we?" I stood, pacing. "It's exactly what he'd do. Consolidate power, make a fortune, and get rid of me all at once."
"Then we move first," Kael said. "Hit him before he can make the deal."
"With what army?" Veda challenged. "We've got maybe thirty wolves. He's got hundreds."
"We don't need an army." I stopped pacing, an idea forming. "We need leverage. Something he wants more than the Luna Code."
"There's nothing he wants more than that," Damien said.
"Yes there is." I turned to face them. "His legitimacy. His reputation. His standing in the business world." I smiled, cold and calculated. "We destroy that, we destroy him."
Damien's eyes lit with understanding. "Nightborne Tech."
"Exactly. My company is still laundering Syndicate money. If I can reclaim it legally, expose the connections publicly—"
"The Council will drop him like a hot coal," Veda finished, grinning. "They can't afford to be associated with exposed criminal activity."
"It's risky," Kael said. "The moment you go public, every pack in the region will know where you are."
"Good." I met his eyes. "Let them come. I'm done hiding."
\---
Three days later, I stood outside the Nightborne Tech headquarters in downtown Manhattan, staring up at the building that used to be mine.
Fifty-two floors of glass and steel. Billions in assets. And currently controlled by wolves who'd stolen it from me.
"You ready for this?" Damien asked beside me, looking every inch the billionaire in his custom suit.
I smoothed down my own outfit—a blood-red power suit that cost more than most people's cars, perfectly tailored, designed to make a statement.
I was taking back what was mine.
"Ready," I said.
We walked through the lobby, and I felt every eye turn toward us. Whispers followed in our wake.
"Is that Zariah Nightborne?"
"I thought she was dead."
"Who's that with her? Romano?"
The elevator ride to the executive floor felt endless. My heart hammered against my ribs, but I kept my expression cold and controlled.
When the doors opened, we were met by security.
"Ms. Nightborne." The head guard looked uncomfortable. "I'm afraid you're not authorized to be here."
"Really?" I pulled out the legal documents Damien's team had prepared. "Because according to corporate law, I never stopped being the majority shareholder. My father's sale was fraudulent, which means every decision made since then is legally void."
I handed him the papers. "So unless you want to be named in the lawsuit I'm about to file, I suggest you let me through."
The guard paled, scanning the documents. After a long moment, he stepped aside.
"Thank you," I said sweetly, walking past.
The boardroom was exactly as I remembered. Long table. Leather chairs. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city.
And sitting at the head of the table, looking like he owned the place, was Lucien.
"Zariah." He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "What a surprise. Come to beg for your old job back?"
"Come to take my company back," I corrected, taking the seat directly across from him. Damien settled beside me, his presence a silent threat.
Lucien's smile faded. "You have no claim here."
"Actually, I have the only claim that matters. Legal ownership." I slid copies of the documents across the table. "My father's sale was fraudulent. Which means you've been operating an illegally acquired asset for the past five years. That's corporate fraud, Lucien. The kind that comes with serious prison time."
His expression darkened. "You're bluffing."
"Am I?" I leaned forward. "Test me. Call your lawyers. But while you're doing that, I'll be calling every business reporter in the city. I wonder what they'll think when they find out the new Alpha Don built his empire on stolen property and laundered money."
The temperature in the room dropped.
"You wouldn't dare," Lucien said quietly. "You'd destroy yourself in the process."
"Maybe. But I'd take you down with me." I smiled. "And honestly? That sounds like a fair trade."
We stared at each other across the table, years of hatred crackling between us.
Finally, Lucien stood. "You want the company? Fine. Take it. But you're making a mistake, Zariah. A very costly one."
"The only mistake I made was trusting your family in the first place."
He walked toward the door, then paused. "You think you've won something here today. But all you've done is paint a bigger target on your back. The Council won't forget this. And neither will I."
"Good," I said softly. "I'm counting on it."
After he left, I let out the breath I'd been holding.
"That went better than expected," Damien said.
"He gave up too easily." I stood, walking to the windows. "He's planning something."
"Probably." Damien joined me, close enough that I could feel his warmth. "But for now, you won. You got your company back."
I looked up at him, and something shifted between us. The adrenaline. The victory. The proximity.
"Thank you," I said quietly. "For the legal work. For being here. For—"
"Zariah." His voice was rough. "You don't have to thank me. I told you I'd help you destroy them. I meant it."
"Why?" I turned to face him fully. "Why help me after everything?"
"You really have to ask?" He reached up, his fingers brushing my cheek. "Because I'm in love with you. Have been since the first day you walked into that boardroom and told me my quarterly projections were garbage."
I laughed despite myself. "I was right though."
"You were." His thumb traced my bottom lip. "You're always right. It's infuriating."
"Damien—"
"I know you don't trust me. Know I don't deserve another chance. But God, Zariah, I can't stop—"
I kissed him.
Cut off whatever he was about to say because I couldn't hear it. Couldn't handle the vulnerability in his voice without breaking.
He responded immediately, his hands tangling in my hair, pulling me closer. The kiss was desperate, hungry, full of everything we couldn't say.
When we finally broke apart, both breathing hard, his forehead rested against mine.
"We can't do this here," I whispered.
"I know."
"Someone could walk in."
"I know."
"Damien—"
"My penthouse is ten blocks away."
I pulled back to look at him, my heart racing. "This is a terrible idea."
"Probably the worst one we've had yet." His smile was devastating. "So? Your place or mine?"
I should've said no. Should've kept the distance between us.
But I was tired of fighting what I felt.
"Yours," I said. "But we're taking separate cars. Can't have anyone thinking—"
"That we're together?" He kissed me again, softer this time. "Let them think whatever they want. I'm done hiding how I feel about you."
Twenty minutes later, we stood in his penthouse, and the moment the door closed, we were on each other.