THE GATHERING STORM

Amira slammed the door behind her, rainwater pooling on the marble floor of Zion's penthouse. Zion stepped from the shadows, his expression both relieved and wary. She threw the dossier onto the table, her voice raw. "Tell me why Celeste died. Tell me why you hid the truth."

Zion moved closer, but Amira raised her hand, trembling with rage. "Don't touch me," she hissed.

A tense, charged argument unfurled between them, Zion revealing that Dominic was using Celeste's hidden paintings to launder money, that her death had been orchestrated as part of a power grab within the Carter empire. Rosalie burst in, breathless, reporting that Dominic and Theo were fleeing Paris and heading toward Lyon. Zion tried to keep Amira in the penthouse, begging her to stay safe, but Amira refused.

She demanded Gabriel and Rosalie gather weapons, tech, anything they could use. As thunder rolled over Paris, Amira whispered, more to herself than to anyone else: "I've been running my whole life. Now I hunt."

Zion watching helplessly, and Rosalie said: "If we do this, there's no going back."

Amira nodded, eyes blazing. "Good."