Chapter 20: A Deal in the Shadows

As Lily got closer to the docks, the air was thick with the smell of damp wood and salt. The warehouses were shrouded in a spooky veil as a dense fog rolled off the sea. As she approached Victor Kane's secret world, which she had only seen from afar, her heart raced. She would be at the heart of it tonight.

Ethan moved silently and deliberately as he strolled next to her. He was a source of anxiety as much as solace. Although he had vowed to support her, she was aware that he didn't quite agree with her choice to follow Jack's plan.

As they arrived at the edge of the warehouse yard, Ethan said, "Stay close." "We're leaving here if something goes wrong. No bravery.

Lily gripped her bag's thin strap and nodded. Inside was a tiny recorder Jack had handed her, intended to catch any words Victor could say that would implicate him. It was all she had, yet it felt like a thin weapon against the man who had ruined so many lives.