CHAPTER 1 – THE ASSIGNMENT
Rain hammered the city that night, turning the streets into shining mirrors. In a penthouse office with tinted glass and black leather furniture, Daniel King stood in front of the man everyone in the underworld feared but never named.
To the world, he was Mr. Clark, a quiet business magnate.
To Daniel, he was Boss—leader of The Circle, a high-level gangster organization that specialized in political manipulation, blackmail, and clean, profitable chaos.
"Sit," Mr. Clark said, voice calm, fingers tapping on a crystal glass of whiskey.
Daniel sat. He never slouched in front of the boss. His eyes stayed sharp, his posture controlled, his heartbeat steady.
Clark slid a tablet across the table. A picture filled the screen.
A girl.
Pretty, with big warm eyes and a soft, confident smile. Her hair fell in long waves, and she wore a simple white dress in the photo, as if she didn't know how expensive she looked.
Amara Williams.
"Daughter of Senator Richard Williams," Clark said. "Front-runner for the next election. Clean image. Too clean."
Daniel's fingers tightened slightly around the tablet.
"What do you need?" he asked.
Clark smiled faintly. "Not me. A client. Senator Williams' opponent in the coming race. He wants the senator destroyed. Not just defeated. Ruined."
"And the girl?"
Clark's eyes glinted. "She's your way in."
The boss leaned forward.
"You will meet her by accident. You will make her fall in love with you. You will become close to her family. You will find whatever filth they are hiding… and we will leak it. Slowly. Carefully. Enough to topple the senator before election day."
"And when it's done?" Daniel asked.
"You walk away. We get our money. The client gets his victory." Clark's gaze turned cold. "One more thing, Daniel."
"Yes, boss."
"No attachments. No sympathy. You are a weapon. Nothing more. Betrayal is death. You know that."
Daniel nodded once.
He knew it better than anyone.