Chapter 3

Valeria Monroe's POV

The closet smelled like dust and forgotten textbooks, the air thick with the scent of old paper and something faintly metallic. Jasper Kane was too close, his presence a wall of heat in the suffocating space. My pulse slammed against my ribs, the sound loud in the silence between us. The footsteps outside slowed. Calloway wasn't moving on.

A chill spread through me. If he found me here, if he knew I had been in his office-no, I couldn't let myself think about that.

Jasper's grip on my wrist tightened slightly, grounding me. His breath fanned against my temple, voice low. "Stay still."

I barely nodded. The door outside creaked, footsteps shuffling. Calloway's shadow stretched across the gap beneath the door. He was close. Too close. The world held its breath. Seconds stretched into eternity. My lungs ached from holding in every ounce of fear threatening to spill over. Then, finally, the footsteps moved away.

Jasper didn't release me immediately, waiting until the fading echo of Calloway's movements disappeared into the distance. His fingers loosened, but he didn't step back. "You gonna tell me what you found now?"

Shaking off the lingering panic, I swallowed hard. "They know about me."

Jasper's expression darkened. "Who's 'they'?"

"Whoever Calloway is working with. He got an email- 'Containment Measures.'" The words tasted bitter. "It mentioned a student, and I think that student is me."

His jaw ticked, tension coiling around his frame. "Then you need to stop digging."

A sharp laugh escaped before I could stop it. "And do what? Pretend I didn't see what I saw? Let them decide what 'containment' means?"

Jasper's gaze flickered with something unreadable. "They're powerful, Valeria. People like that don't just threaten-they follow through."

His words should have scared me. Maybe they did. But fear wasn't enough to stop me now.

Shoving past him, I pushed the closet door open, inhaling the cool air of the hallway. The dim lights cast long shadows, but the corridor was empty. Calloway was gone.

Jasper followed, his presence lingering close behind. "You have no idea what you're walking into."

Turning to face him, I met his stare head-on. "Then maybe you should help me."

The silence between us stretched, something heavy simmering beneath the surface.

Finally, Jasper exhaled sharply. "This is a bad idea."

"That's not a no."

He scrubbed a hand over his face, muttering something under his breath. "Meet me tomorrow night. The Rusted Nail. You're going to need more than just blind determination."

The weight of the night pressed down on me, but a single thought burned through the fear- this wasn't over. Not even close.

---

Jasper Kane's POV

The Rusted Nail wasn't the kind of place someone like Valeria Monroe belonged. Dimly lit, with the scent of whiskey and old leather soaked into the walls, it was a haven for people who thrived in the gray areas of life.

Valeria sat stiffly at a booth in the corner, her fingers curled around a glass of water. She looked out of place-too polished, too cautious-but there was a fire in her eyes that hadn't been there before.

Sliding into the seat across from her, I set my beer on the table and leaned back. "You showed."

She lifted her chin slightly. "You asked me to."

A smirk tugged at the corner of my mouth. "Figured you'd think better of it."

Valeria's fingers tapped against the glass, restless energy radiating from her. "You said I needed more than blind determination. So tell me- what do I need?"

Shaking my head, I let the moment stretch before answering. "First? A reality check. You think you're in control of this, but you're not. These people? They don't just make threats. If they think you're a problem, you won't see it coming until it's too late."

Her jaw tightened. "Then I need to be smarter."

The fire in her voice sparked something unexpected. Most people backed down when things got dangerous. Valeria wasn't most people.

Exhaling slowly, I pulled out my phone, scrolling through my messages before sliding it across the table. "Elliot dug up something interesting."

Her gaze flickered to the screen. A bank statement, Calloway's name listed under several transactions. Large sums of money moving in and out of unmarked accounts.

Valeria's fingers tightened around the phone. "This isn't normal."

"No, it's not." I studied her carefully. "And if Calloway's getting paid off, it means he's not working alone."

She looked up, eyes locking onto mine. "Then we find out who's pulling the strings."

The girl had no idea what she was getting herself into.

And for some reason, I wasn't stopping her.

---

**Valeria's POV**

The night air bit at my skin as we stepped out of the bar. The streets stretched quiet, the city humming in the distance. My mind raced through everything Jasper had shown me. Calloway wasn't just hiding something-he was part of something bigger.

Jasper walked beside me, his presence oddly steady despite the storm unraveling in my head. "You're not scared, are you?"

I should have been. But fear had been replaced by something sharper. "I don't like being lied to."

A low chuckle escaped him. "That makes two of us."

A sudden noise-sharp, deliberate-echoed from the alleyway ahead. My steps faltered, instinct tightening my muscles.

Jasper's posture shifted, alert. "Stay close."

A figure emerged from the shadows, slow and calculated. The man from Calloway's office.

Every hair on my body stood on end.

The man's gaze settled on me. Cold. Assessing. "Valeria Monroe."

My name on his lips felt like a warning.

Jasper shifted slightly, angling himself between us. "Don't think she's interested in whatever you're selling."

The man ignored him, eyes locked on mine. "Curiosity is a dangerous thing, Miss Monroe."

My fingers curled into fists. "So is underestimating the wrong person."