John’s mind was moving too fast.

  Everything had been a setup—the Black Veil, the conversation, even Cain’s men.

  And now? Someone was dead.

  Because of what they knew.

  John exhaled slowly. "Start talking, Aria."

  Aria didn’t respond immediately.

  She studied him, as if deciding how much to say.

  Then—"Cain is looking for something. Something big. And it’s tied to Eli’s father."

  John clenched his fists. "I already figured that part out. What I don’t get is why he’s interested in me."

  Aria gave him a long look.

  "You really don’t know, do you?"

  John’s pulse spiked. "Know what?"

  Aria sighed. Then she said it.

  "Eli’s father didn’t just work for Cain," she said. "He worked on you."

  John froze.

  His mind locked, refusing to process the words.

  "He worked on me."

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  That didn’t make sense.

  It couldn’t make sense.

  "I never met Eli’s father," John said. "I don’t even know who he is."

  Aria’s gaze didn’t waver. "Doesn’t matter. That doesn’t mean he didn’t know you."

  John exhaled sharply. No. No way.

  But deep down, something in him knew she wasn’t lying.

  It explained too much.

  Why Cain was watching him. Why Vance picked him. Why Aria had been following him from the start.

  This wasn’t random. It was personal.

  John inhaled sharply, forcing himself to focus.

  "What was his name?"

  Aria hesitated.

  Then—"Dr. Elias Ren."

  John’s breath caught.

  He knew that name.

  Or rather, he had heard it before.

  In whispers. In passing. A ghost of a rumor in the lower districts.

  Ren wasn’t just an engineer.

  He was a scientist. A researcher.

  One who had vanished without a trace.

  John’s stomach twisted.

  What had he been working on?

  And what did that have to do with him?

  John ran a hand through his hair, piecing it together.

  If Ren had worked for Cain…

  If Cain had been looking for him…

  And if Cain thought John had something to do with it…

  Then that meant John wasn’t just a loose variable.

  He was part of the equation.

  "Cain thinks I have something," John murmured. "Something Ren left behind."

  Aria nodded. "And if he hasn’t found it yet, that means you don’t even know what it is."

  John’s pulse pounded.

  This was worse than he thought.

  Way worse.

  Cain wasn’t just watching him. He was waiting.

  Waiting for John to figure it out himself.

  And when he did?

  Cain would come for him.

  John exhaled, pushing the panic down.

  He couldn’t afford to hesitate.

  He needed to get ahead of this.

  If Cain was waiting for him to make a move—then he had to make the right one.

  "Where do I start?" John asked.

  Aria’s smirk returned, but this time, it was different.

  It wasn’t amused. It was expectant.

  "You start," she said, "by finding out what Ren left behind."

  John clenched his fists.

  Then that’s exactly what he was going to do.