Page 6 of Raven

His finger traces the length of a loose strand of my hair, the gesture so simple, yet it feels outrageously open.

Raven has a notorious reputation in Ayana. The “handler,” the negotiator, the man who oversees pretty much anything that comes in and out of Zion Island. He handles the treaty between the world’s almighty who reside here, including the Gen-Alpha corporation, and Port Mrei’s mayor and crew, the island’s mafia.

In hindsight, I should’ve known that the person who’d challenge me would be yet another all-powerful man.

Raven cocks his head as he studies me. “Kat and Marlow were speaking in Russian.”

Here it is—the moment way overdue.

His finger inches down the side of my face, my neck. My hair stands on end, my body burning. Danger and want are a cocktail the taste of which I’ve long forgotten.

It takes all my willpower to keep my breathing even.

His eyes drop to his finger that gently glides to my shoulder, stopping at the strap of my dress.

Don’t stop.

We are in the middle of the street, and the thought is ridiculous. When he slowly raises his eyes to meet mine again, the nervousness pulsing through my body is back.

Finally, he lets a smile out to play. His voice is almost a whisper, gentle yet etched with danger, like a sharp blade wrapped in a sleeve.

“Do you want to tell me how you know Russian?” he asks, then adds, “Maddy,” with an unmistakable punctuation. “Or should I call you Milena Tsariuk?”

It’s surreal to hear someone call me by my real name. There’s a triumph in his eyes, but I don’t break the eye contact.

“What do you want, Raven?” I ask.

His gaze is hypnotizing. His closeness is invasive. When he strokes my cheek with the back of his fingers, I should pull away. But I don’t. His touch makes my body hum.

“You,” he says simply. “Unless you want your little secret to be known.”

Hurried footsteps are coming our way, and his hand falls off me.

“Maddy!” Guff slows his pace as he approaches us and gives Raven a hostile glance before turning to me. “You all right?”

Raven doesn’t look at him, though, his eyes on me, and he takes a slow step back. “I will see you soon, Maddy.”

He starts walking away, disappearing into the darkness as Guff raises his eyebrows. “What was that about? Saw him follow you out of the restaurant, thought it looked suspicious. You okay?”

“Yeah,” I whisper, wondering why this interaction with Raven is making me feel like I just got a shot of adrenalin.

Game over, I want to say to myself.

But I know the game has only just begun.

3

RAVEN

Maddy thinks this is going to be a simple hit-and-run sort of thing. But I’m going to pry her open and find out every little secret she has. As much as I want Maddy, I really want to know the version of her she ran away from. She grew up in wealth, among brutal men, guarded and pampered. And though she is used to cruel men, I bet sweet Maddy never intended to get mixed up with a guy like me.

I would’ve liked to tell her exactly what I wanted from her. That clumsy giant, Guff, is one of her best friends from the Eastside, and his interruption was untimely.

But I’m already anticipating whatever will happen to me and the beautiful girl who is Ayana’s biggest secret.

I get on my motorcycle parked at the front of the restaurant, then zoom through the resort toward the beach. On foot, I cross the sandy part, past the pier, and toward the rocks on the northern part.

It’s dark, only the pier lit up by the lights, clusters of them dotting the horizon, where the luxury yachts are anchored. The salty breeze wafts into my face, and I inhale deeply, finally letting my smile out, remembering how unfazed Maddy looked. She sure knows how to stay calm. Oh, but wait, that’s Milena Tsariuk, who perfected her disguise for two years on Zion.

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