The evening air was cooler than usual for Rome, crisp with the scent of late spring rain. From her
corner office, Yuna Kim watched the city blur behind streaks of drizzle. Her eyes weren't focused
on the skyline, though they were locked on a single file folder in her hands. Unassuming on the
outside. Damning on the inside.
She had found it.
Or at least, a piece of it.
An account named Andros Consortium. It wasn't listed anywhere in Ricci Global's official
registry. But it received regular, high-volume transfers from divisions connected to defense
contracts and private security holdings assets Lucien Ricci had never publicly admitted his
company held.
And the deeper she went, the more the shell companies began to connect to ports, warehouses in
Eastern Europe, unnamed subcontractors. It wasn't just shady. It was organized. Systematic.
Almost militaristic.
She reached for her laptop, fingers flying across the keyboard as she began mapping out the money
trail until a voice snapped her out of her focus.
"You weren't supposed to find that."
Yuna's heart jumped. She spun around Lucien Ricci stood in the doorway, drenched from the rain,
his tailored coat clinging to his frame. The look in his eyes was unreadable, but his jaw was set
tight, his voice flat. Dangerous.
She rose to her feet slowly, not hiding the file. "Maybe you shouldn't have made it so obvious."
His brow lifted, more amused than angry. "That file was buried behind twelve firewalls and a
rotating cipher embedded in an encrypted network. Finding it makes you either very good… or
very reckless."
"I didn't come here to play games, Mr. Ricci." She tapped the file. "You wanted transparency.
This isn't it."
Lucien walked inside, shutting the door behind him with a soft click. "You're assuming I wanted
transparency," he said, eyes never leaving hers. "I wanted control over what gets seen. You, Ms.
Kim, are quickly becoming an unpredictable variable."
Yuna stood her ground. "I'm just doing my job."
His eyes scanned her face sharp, precise. "And what exactly do you think your job is now? Still
believe this is just a financial audit?"
She narrowed her gaze. "I think Ricci Global is a façade. A very elaborate one. I think you control
more than assets. You control movement. Arms. Trade routes. And I think if I dig deeper, I'll find
blood behind those spreadsheets."
Lucien stepped closer. "If you dig deeper, you'll find your own name buried in the same dirt, Ms.
Kim. The moment you stepped into this world; you became part of it."
A beat passed. Her pulse thundered in her ears.
"So, kill me," she said coolly, refusing to let fear show. "If I'm such a risk, you could've had me
silenced the moment I stepped off the plane."
Lucien tilted his head, something flickering in his expression. Curiosity. Admiration. Something
else.
"I could have," he said. "But then I wouldn't have known if you were loyal to the numbers... or to
me."
Silence stretched between them like an electric current. Yuna didn't move. Neither did he.
Finally, Lucien's tone changed quieter. He looked toward the file.
"That's only part of the story," he said. "You found Andros. But you haven't found out who it's
protecting."
"And who's that?"
Lucien hesitated, and for the first time, something cracked in his armor.
"My family."
Flashback: Milan, Ten Years Ago
The screams were louder than the storm outside.
Lucien Ricci, nineteen and covered in blood, crouched beside his dying father in a warehouse
soaked with gasoline and betrayal. The Ricci family had ruled the Milan underworld for three
generations. But greed, even among blood, ran deeper than loyalty.
His uncle had betrayed them. The Silent Syndicate a secret council of European crime lords had
ordered a purge. Lucien's father refused to bow. And now he lay in Lucien's arms, dying for it.
"Don't trust them," his father gasped, blood in his mouth. "Even when they wear your name."
Lucien didn't cry. He didn't scream. He stood, took the gun from his father's cold hand, and
walked into the next room where his uncle was waiting, drink in hand.
Ten seconds later, only Lucien walked out.
Back in the present, Yuna watched Lucien carefully. "You built this empire on revenge."
"No," Lucien said. "I built it on survival. The revenge came later."
She sat back down, trying to piece together the man in front of her.
"And Andros?"
"Andros funds protection. Bribes politicians. Pays off hitmen. Keeps old enemies quiet. It's the
only reason the Syndicate hasn't come for me."
Yuna's mind reeled. This was bigger than any corruption case she had ever uncovered. Bigger than
embezzlement or financial crime. This was an international crime network masked behind the
most pristine corporation in Europe.
"You're not just a CEO," she whispered. "You're a king."
Lucien chuckled, but there was no humor in it. "Kings are targets, Ms. Kim. I prefer the shadows."
Yuna closed the file, locking eyes with him. "And you brought me into the light on purpose. Why?"
His gaze softened—just slightly. "Because everyone I've trusted is either dead or trying to kill me.
I needed someone smart. Unafraid. Independent."
She arched a brow. "So, I'm a test?"
"No," Lucien said. "You're my gamble."
Later That Night: Villa Ricci, Outside Rome
The estate was silent as Lucien pulled into the private drive, his tires kicking gravel. He parked,
exiting his car into the cold dark. The villa loomed like a memory behind stone gates—his family's
old home, now occupied by someone he hadn't seen in months.
In the shadows near the olive trees, a figure stepped out.
Gabriel Ricci Lucien's younger brother. Cleaner. Smarter. Colder.
"You told her?" Gabriel asked.
"She's not stupid."
Gabriel's face twisted in distaste. "And when she leaks it? When she puts your name on a tribunal
list and hands Andros to Interpol?
Lucien stared at the trees. "She won't."
Gabriel's voice turned icy. "You're getting soft."
"No," Lucien said, walking past him. "I'm getting ready."
"For what?"
Lucien's eyes gleamed in the dark. "War."