Chapter 1

• “You sold me to them?!”
• My voice cracked, a shattered shriek that punctured the suffocating silence of the study. I wanted to claw the words back, wanted to wake up from this living nightmare, but they were already out. I stared at my own father, but all I saw was a monster wearing his face.
• “Roxanne, you don’t understand!” he roared back, his face flushing a violent crimson as the veins in his neck strained. “The Sentinels were going to destroy everything! I had no choice. This was the only way to keep the money, the power, the legacy—”
• “Legacy?!” A hollow, bitter laugh ripped from my throat, instantly dissolving into heavy, breathless sobs. It felt like a pair of iron claws was squeezing my chest, slowly crushing my heart into dust. “You traded your own daughter’s life for power? I am your blood, Dad! Your only child...”
• My breath hitched violently when he slammed his glass onto the mahogany desk. The sharp crack of shattering crystal echoed like a gunshot in the tense air.
• “I gave you everything!” he snarled, his eyes wild and predatory. “This mansion, your future, your prestigious name! And you repay me by digging into The Ledger like a foolish, meddling little girl?!”
• “I was trying to save you!” I screamed, my body shaking so violently I had to grab the edge of the wall to stay upright. “I was trying to save you from the absolute monster you’ve become!”
• His hand flew up, poised to strike me—a line he had never crossed in my entire life. I flinched, bracing for the impact, but the blow never landed.
• A deafening barrage of gunshots exploded from downstairs, instantly followed by piercing, terrified screams.
• Every drop of color drained from Dad’s face. The fury in his eyes vanished, replaced by a raw, paralyzing terror that chilled me to the bone.
• “They’re here,” he whispered, his voice trembling.
• “Dad… what’s happening? Who is that?” I whimpered, a cold sweat breaking across my skin.
• He didn’t answer. He lunged forward, grabbing my arm with agonizing force—his fingers digging deep into my flesh—and dragged me toward the far bookcover. His hands shook uncontrollably as he fumbled desperately behind the leather-bound novels.
• With a low, mechanical groan, the heavy bookshelf slid aside, yawning open into a pitch-black, freezing secret passage.
• “Get inside,” he hissed, shoving me roughly into the dark gap. “Run as fast as you can. Don’t look back. Don’t you dare stop.”
• “I’m not leaving you!” I wept, my fingers clawing at the fabric of his sleeve. My knees felt like water; I couldn’t make my feet move away from him.
• Dad shoved me harder, his face twisted in desperation. “Go, Roxanne! Live for me!”
• I stumbled backward into the icy stone passage, my feet slipping. I turned just in time to see the heavy study doors splinter inward.
• Three masked figures stormed the room, their rifles already raised.
• Dad fired blindly, his arm shaking. One of the intruders crumpled to the floor.
• But before he could aim again, a hail of gunfire answered.
• The first bullet tore into his shoulder. A spray of crimson painted the pristine marble floor. He staggered backward, a wet gasp escaping his lips.
• “Dad!” I shrieked, but the sound died in my throat, choking me.
• The second bullet ripped through his chest. His eyes widened in sheer shock and agonizing pain, his mouth catching a breath that would never come.
• I wanted to run to him. I wanted to press my hands against his wounds to stop the bleeding. But my feet were cemented to the floor, paralyzed by pure horror as hot tears scalded my cheeks.
• The third and fourth bullets struck his abdomen. Dad collapsed to his knees, coughing up dark blood. His fading, glassy eyes searched the darkness of the passage, desperately looking for me.
• “Run…” he choked out, his final breath spent on me. “I’m sorry… my little girl… run…”
• One final, deafening shot rang out.
• His body jerked violently, then fell limp, face-down in the rapidly spreading pool of his own blood.
• A raw, primal scream of pure agony tore from my throat. I slammed both hands over my mouth, biting my own skin to muffle the sound as my entire world collapsed. My father—the man who had just betrayed me, but the father who had given me life—was dead. Slain right before my eyes.
• The masked men turned, their heavy boots clicking on the marble as they headed straight toward the hidden passage. The very terror that had paralyzed me suddenly flooded my veins with adrenaline. I spun into the pitch-black tunnel and ran.
• Barefoot. Shaking. Blinded by tears.
• I sobbed silently as my feet hit the cold, jagged ground, every step feeling like stepping on glass. My lungs burned, screaming for air, but the image of my father’s dying face flashed behind my eyelids, driving me forward.
• Who were those men? Were they the Syndicate he tried to sell me to? Or were they the Sentinels he always warned me were demons in the dark?
• I didn’t know. I didn’t care.
• The only thing that mattered was the freezing, suffocating truth: I was entirely alone. Hunted. And no matter how broken my heart was, I had to keep running. Because if I stopped… I would be next.