Chapter 6 - Adrian ValeThe name meant something.
Even Mia had heard it, though never attached to the tattooed man outside the café.
Adrian Vale was a ghost in Ravenshore. A billionaire to some, a criminal to others, a savior to people no one listened to. He owned warehouses, shelters, security firms, and half the buildings near the docks.
But he almost never appeared in public.
Rumor had filled the empty space where truth should have been.
Mia stared at him. “You’re Adrian Vale?”
He looked tired. “Unfortunately.”
Marcus leaned back in his chair. “Tell her the rest. Tell her why people cross the street when they see you.”
Adrian did not flinch.
“Because I let them believe I was worse than the men I hunted.”
Mia frowned.
Caleb explained. “Years ago, Adrian’s father built a shipping company. After he died, Adrian discovered criminals were using the docks to move people, stolen goods, and illegal payments. The police were paid to look away. Judges were threatened. Witnesses disappeared.”
Mia’s hands went cold.
“So he scared them back,” Caleb said. “Bought their buildings. Exposed their accounts. Protected witnesses. Took hits to his reputation so others could stay alive.”
Adrian looked at Marcus. “And Marcus helped us. At first.”
Marcus laughed bitterly. “Helped? I was your errand boy.”
“You were trusted,” Adrian said.
“I was invisible.”
“You were greedy.”
Marcus’s face hardened.
Mia thought of every cruel thing he had said to her. Every time he made people feel small because he could.
Now she understood.
Marcus had not hated weakness.
He hated being reminded of his own.
Adrian turned to Mia.
May you like
“This café was a safe drop point,” he said. “Marcus turned it into a trap.”
And Mia realized the man everyone feared had collapsed exactly where betrayal had begun.
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