Regrets and Ghost

Lex Latham's hands rested in his coat pockets as he leaned against the edge of the rooftop, the Manhattan skyline sprawling endlessly beneath him. Rain had started falling again—thin, needle-like drops that clung to the collar of his jacket.

Rose stood a few feet away, leaning on the metal railing, arms crossed tightly over her chest. She wasn't shivering from the cold—Lex knew that wasn't her style.

"Do you have a next move," Rose muttered, breaking the quiet.

Lex's eyes stayed fixed on the distant lights below.

"Nothing left to play for after this."

Rose's gaze flicked toward him, sharp and searching.

"You let him walk all over you back there. I've seen you take bigger swings for less."

Lex's fingers twitched in his pocket, brushing the cold steel of the pistol tucked inside.

"I wasn't ready," he said simply.

Rose's expression darkened.

"You keep saying that, but you're not doing much to get ready either. How long are you going to wait, Lex? Until Barnie decides it's your turn?"

Lex smirked faintly, though there was no humor in it.

"I've been living on borrowed time since I was twelve, Rose. Every day's just another extension."

That made her pause. Her arms slowly dropped to her sides as she watched him carefully, sensing the shift in his tone.

"You mean since your dad's plane went down."

Lex's gaze lowered slightly, but he didn't correct her.

The silence stretched between them, heavy, serious and cold.

Finally, Rose sighed, stepping closer to him.

"Look, I get it. Barnie ruined your family. Took your father's company. Your trust fund. Whatever was left."

Lex glanced at her, the faintest flicker in his eyes.

"That's the story everyone knows."

Rose frowned.

"Isn't it the truth?"

Lex let the rain soak into his hair as he stared out at the city, his pulse slowing to a steady, deliberate rhythm.

"Not all of it."

She tilted her head, curiosity piqued.

Lex didn't look at her when he spoke again.

"The plane crash wasn't an accident."

Rose blinked.

For a second, the words didn't quite land.

"What?"

Lex's hands tightened in his pockets.

"Barnie made it look like an accident, but it wasn't. My father found something—backroom deals, stuff. Barnie had been laundering money through offshore fronts for years."

Rose's brows furrowed.

"And he tried to stop it?"

Lex nodded.

Rose's breath slowed, and her gaze sharpened.

"You never said—"

"Because it didn't matter," Lex cut her off. "Barnie cleaned it up so well that even I believed it for years."

Rose's brow furrowed as she processed the weight behind his words.

"And your mom?"

Lex's jaw tightened.

"Barnie didn't kill her. Not directly."

Rose's eyes narrowed.

"But he just let her die without getting a chance to fight."

Lex finally met her gaze, and in that moment, Rose saw it—the part of him he never let anyone else see.

"She was sick. And there was treatment. But Barnie had her trust fund locked in legal battles for years, claiming my father left debts. He play the long game, made mistake happen and then it was too late. I watch it happen. I had four Trust funds, rose. Not one, Four. I was suppose to be able to fix almost everything with money. He didn't pull the trigger, but he pull the rope and my mom neck was at one end."

Lex gave a faint, humorless smirk.

"He's always been after me. Back then, it was easy. I was just the kid who didn't matter. But when I turned eighteen, things changed. Barnie started shifting assets—things my father left me—into risky ventures under the company name. My name. He bleed me dry pretending to build me up."

Rose exhaled slowly, her eyes softening.

"And you've been waiting to get him back ever since."

Lex's smirk faded.

"No. I've been waiting to make sure I never miss."

The weight in his words sat heavy between them, thick as the rain falling around them. This secret was something he never shared with anyone not event his mom but she knew, they just didn't talk about it much to his regret.

Rose shifted her stance, leaning against the railing beside him.

"So why now? Why not years ago?"

Lex's eyes traced the skyline, the faint glimmer of Barnie's office tower piercing through the clouds.

"Because for the first time, Barnie's vulnerable."

Rose arched a brow.

"You think he's slipping?"

Lex's gaze hardened.

"I know he is. The men he sent tonight weren't pros. They were grunts. Barnie's stretching his leash too far. He's burning through people faster than he is burning money."

Rose nodded thoughtfully, tapping her fingers against the rail.

"And if he burns through enough of them…"

Lex finished the thought.

"He'll have to face me himself."

The two of them stood quietly, the city humming beneath their feet.

Rose glanced sideways at him.

"What happens when you finally get him in front of you?"

Lex's fingers brushed over the pistol hidden beneath his coat.

"Its checkmate. Either me or him."

Lex smirk.

"Walking away isn't in my blood."

The words lingered between them, heavy with finality.

Rose reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a folded slip of paper.

"I wasn't sure if I should show you this," she said, handing it to him.

Rose didn't flinch at the cold finality in his voice.

Instead, she reached into her pocket and pulled out the folded slip of paper she'd taken from the dead man.

"I didn't show you this earlier," she said, handing it to him.

Lex took it without hesitation, unfolding the damp sheet.

His eyes scanned the page, and his smirk returned, sharp and dangerous.

Rose watched his expression shift.

"Good news?"

Lex tucked the paper into his coat.

"Barnie's hosting a private fundraiser tomorrow night. Invite-only."

Rose arched a brow.

"Let me guess. You're crashing it."

Lex met her gaze, the storm finally flickering behind his eyes.

"No. I'm ending it."

It wasn't the ideal game Lex had plan it to be but he was tight on time. This was the last gambit.