?


    History has this way of always putting women on the losing side.


    Back in ancient times, they were traded like cattle in arranged marriages. During wars, they were used as sex ves. And now? They''re treated likemodities in some sick, transactional game,


    The injustice lit a fire inside me. "Xander''s supposed to be a male model, right? Do they only pick ''premium'' guys too?"


    Hayden nodded. “Yeah. Men and women-they only go for the best of the best."


    Suddenly, it all clicked. Hayden couldn''t let Cole figure out he was impersonating Xander. DracoLux wasn''t just some seedy club; it was the biggest trafficking hub around. If Cole knew the truth, Hayden would lose his shot at taking the whole operation down.


    "But Wayne knows who you really are. Why hasn''t he ratted you out to Cole? Isn''t he scared of the fallout?" I asked, still puzzled.


    “Wayne''s smart. Even though he''s involved, there''s no direct evidence tying him to DracoLux. He''s protected himself from any blowback. And..." His expression darkened. He probably wants DracoLux to copse."


    "So, he''s nning to let it crumble so he can take over the ck market himself?"


    Hayden smirked. "Clever girl."


    "Okay, but isn''t he worried you''ll take down the whole operation?" I asked, pushing back. Hayden''s n wasn''t just to cause chaos-it was to gut the whole traffickingwork, ripping out its roots. If he seeded, DracoLux would be nothing but dust.


    "Wayne''s already got backup," Hayden said. "He''s working with Bruno and Hernan-two rising stars in the global ck market. If I destroy the oldwork, he''ll just build a shiny new one with them."


    My frustration boiled over. "Then take him down first. Let''s see him try to build anything when he''s the one in ruins."


    “Exactly. Taking him out is one of my top priorities," Hayden said, his gaze softening as itnded on me. "Otherwise, he''ll keep scheming to take what''s mine-my girl."


    ssic Hayden, steering the conversation away, but he wasn''t wrong. Wayne''s fixation on me wasn''t love. It was twisted, possessive, and all about power. A game he refused to lose.


    I didn''t respond right away, my thoughts spinning from everything Hayden hadid out. The weight of it left me frozen for a moment.


    But one question pushed its way to the surface. What about Xander Zane?"


    Hayden had faked his death, taken Xander''s name, and gone undercover at DracoLux. But if he was pretending to be Xander, where was the real one?


    He didn''t answer immediately, but his expression said enough.


    He had locked Xander up somewhere.


    Xander wasn''t just anyone-he was a major yer. There was no way someone like him would go quietly. Hayden had leveraged their identical looks to pull off the ultimate stolen identity.


    The whole thing suddenly made sense, but it also felt even messier than I''d imagined.


    Hayden wasn''t just fighting DracoLux. He was up against the shadowy boss above Xander while nning to take down Wayne at the same time. He was one guy up against an entirework of enemies, and the odds looked impossible.


    "What''s your n now?" I asked, worry creeping into my voice. "Wayne knows who you really are. Are you still going to keep pretending to be Xander?"


    "Of course," Hayden replied without missing a beat.


    "But will Wayne even let you?"


    Hayden smirked. "He will. Do you believe me?"


    If that was


    true, Wayne was probably nning to use Hayden to take down the Drago family while keeping his own hands squeaky clean. ssic Wayne-turn someone else into a weapon and sit back to watch the fireworks.


    I used to think Wayne was warm, even harmless. Now? I saw the truth. His charm and polished manners were just a cover for the snake beneath. He was the definition of ''don''t judge a book by its cover."Belongs ? to N?velDrama.Org.


    "And not only that," Hayden added with a confidence, "he''lle to me with a proposal. for cooperation."


    Yeah, right. Cooperation was just Wayne-speak for turning Hayden into his pawn.


    In any normal situation, Hayden would shut that down immediately. But this wasn''t normal, and with Hayden''s own goals in y, I couldn''t predict what he''d do.


    "So... what about you? Will you agree to his terms?" I asked carefully.


    740