Chapter 1

Alejandro walked up to the entrance of Damon Vercelli's private club guarded by statuesque men in designer suits, their eyes hidden behind dark lenses.

"ID," one of them demanded.

Alejandro hesitated, his jaw moving around the bubble gum he was chewing before taking out a forged identity card and handing it over to him.

The guard scanned it, his expression neutral before nodding him through as the doors swung open, and a wall of pulsing bass, laughter, expensive perfume, and whispered deals engulfed him.

Inside, the club was lavish, crystal chandeliers casting fractured light around as his eyes caught sight of male dancers in nothing but briefs moving around polished poles, their hips swaying seductively to the music as they danced with lustful smiles for the men watching them. On the upper balconies, beautiful people lounged, all orbiting the gravity of one man.

Damon Vercelli.

The communication chip hidden inside Alejandro's ear crackled as he moved through the crowd.

"You good?" Luca's voice came through.

"Yeah." Alejandro's eyes swept the room calmly as he replied.

Damon sat on the upper gallery overlooking the club, his aura tangible, cold, and dominantly untouchable, dressed in a black silk shirt with the top buttons undone, revealing the hard planes of his sculpted chest. His hazel eyes remained fixed on Alejandro from where he sat, tracking his every movement with unsettling focus.

"Damon controls the most dangerous mafia syndicate on the East Coast," Agent Luca's voice crackled softly through the communication chip hidden inside Alejandro's ear. "Arms trafficking, narcotics, human trafficking, all wrapped beneath the façade of a billionaire philanthropist."

Alejandro scoffed under his breath as he lowered himself into a seat.

The man sitting beside him briefly lifted his eyes from his phone to look at him before returning his attention to the screen. Alejandro caught the glance immediately, his gaze shifting to him for a second before blinking away as though he hadn't noticed it at all.

"I know this is not your first undercover operation, but this is by far the most suicidal," Luca continued, his voice laced with warning. "One misstep, kid, and you'll disappear inside Damon's world so completely nobody will ever find a body."

Alejandro opened his mouth slightly and slipped his long index finger inside, hooking the gum from his mouth before pressing it beneath the table and scraping it off once with his thumb.

"You ready for this?" Luca asked.

"You know how far we've come to get this close to Damon," Luca added. "We've spent years trying to put him in handcuffs. Do not screw this up."

Alejandro's lips curled into a faint smile which disappeared almost immediately as his eyes swept around the club, carefully surveying every corner.

"I assure you," Alejandro whispered coldly under his breath as he adjusted the slim cufflink on his wrist. "Tonight we finally get close enough to destroy his empire. I will not let you down."

A brief satisfied exhale crackled through the chip as Alejandro picked up the elegant hourglass--shaped glass left on the table and downed the last of the wine before standing to his feet.

"Thanks for the drink, boss," he muttered, his expression calm, eyes carrying a quiet threat as he met the man's gaze.

They held each other's gaze for a moment before he blinked away first.

"Okay. Good luck," Luca replied, his voice edged with caution as the line went silent. Across the gallery, Damon Vercelli slowly rose from his seat, his hazel eyes still locked solely on him as though he were the only person in the crowded club.

Loathing twisted in Alejandro's gut as he turned toward the bar and ordered a drink, painfully aware that the king of the underworld hadn't looked away from him once since he'd walked through the door.