Rain crawled down the glass walls of Voss Tower like the city itself was bleeding.
Forty-seven floors above the chaos of downtown, Adrian Voss stood alone in his office, the skyline burning gold and gray behind him. Traffic screamed below. Neon lights flickered alive. The city never slept.
Neither did he.
A glass of untouched whiskey rested on his desk beside a thin black folder. The only object in the room that mattered.
The name printed on the cover:
Marquez Holdings.
His jaw tightened.
Fifteen years.
Fifteen years since his father's company collapsed overnight. Fifteen years since scandal dragged the Voss name through the mud. Fifteen years since his father shot himself in this very building after losing everything.
And behind it all…
Victor Marquez.
Adrian's reflection stared back at him from the dark window—sharp suit, colder eyes, a face carved from ambition and restraint. The city feared him now.
They called him ruthless.
Predator.
King of hostile takeovers.
None of them knew vengeance tasted better when served slowly.
A knock interrupted the silence.
"Enter."
His assistant, Daniel, stepped inside, tablet in hand.
"It's confirmed," Daniel said. "Marquez Holdings is collapsing. Loans defaulted. Investors are pulling out. They won't last another month."
Adrian's lips curved faintly.
Not a smile.
Something darker.
"And his daughter?" Adrian asked.
Daniel hesitated. "Elena Marquez returned from Barcelona last week. She's handling negotiations now."
Adrian turned from the window.
"Elena…"
He tasted the name like poison.
The daughter who enjoyed luxury while his family burned.
Daniel continued, "Industry says she's trying to save the company. Selling assets, meeting investors personally. She's desperate."
Good.
Desperation made people agree to things they never would otherwise.
Adrian picked up the black folder and opened it.
Inside lay a prepared contract.
A marriage contract.
Daniel shifted uncomfortably. "Sir… you're really going through with this?"
Adrian's gaze sharpened.
"You disagree?"
"No, sir. Just… marrying her seems excessive. You already own most of their debt. You can destroy them anytime."
Destroying them wasn't enough.
Adrian closed the folder slowly.
"Bankruptcy is mercy," he said quietly. "They walk away poor, but alive."
Daniel swallowed.
Adrian's voice dropped further.
"I want him to watch his daughter suffer. Just like my father watched everything die."
Silence filled the office.
Rain battered the glass harder.
Daniel finally nodded. "The meeting is scheduled tomorrow."
"Good."
Daniel left, the door closing softly behind him.
Adrian returned to the window, memories clawing upward despite years of discipline.
His father's trembling hands.
News headlines screaming fraud.
Investors turning overnight.
And Victor Marquez smiling at a press conference, claiming innocence.
Then the gunshot.
Adrian blinked, the memory fading.
Pain forged monsters.
And Adrian Voss had perfected becoming one.
He opened his phone and pulled up Elena Marquez's profile.
A photograph appeared.
Dark hair. Intelligent eyes. A soft smile completely unsuited for the war she was walking into.
She looked nothing like her father.
Which made what came next even more fitting.
"Innocent people always pay," Adrian murmured.
Thunder rolled over the city.
Tomorrow, Elena Marquez would walk into his office thinking she was negotiating a business deal.
Instead, she would sign away her freedom.
And become Mrs. Adrian Voss.
The first stone laid in the ruins of her life.
He finally lifted the whiskey and drank.
Cold.
Burning.
Perfect.
Outside, the city glittered, unaware that a marriage built on vengeance was about to begin.
And somewhere across town, Elena Marquez prepared to beg for the survival of her family's empire…
…not knowing she was about to marry the man who wanted to destroy it.