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ors. Nobody would know. Nobody else but the man he once was. He reached for his keys and the dossier. He only had one person he trusted enough to allow him to receive assistance without asking questions or judging. Forlan Rice, a former detective. a man who had buried both bodies and sins-secrets and sins. However, never a friend. At the study's entrance, Victor paused. The world expected a governor outside the room. However, a retribution was brewing within. He was not prepared to confess, but he was prepared to fight. because some sins haunt you more than just you. They want to see justice. Eleanor Langston was never one to finish a glass of wine or fight a battle half-heartedly. She carried the weight of her years at 41 with calculation rather than exhaustion. She had earned every crease in the corner of her eyes-some from stress, others from smiling with smiles that were too well-practiced to be genuine. With the grace of a ballroom dancer and the venom of a cornered snake, she was a political strategist. She was elusive to her adversaries, precise to her allies, and invisible to her husband, Victor Langston, the rising governor of Easton County. Eleanor was an expert at underestimating others. She spoke in measured tones, allowing others to believe they were in charge of the conversation, and then quietly swayed the conversation in her favor with a well-placed fact or a more pointed insinuation. Her genius lay not in showmanship but rather in control-cold, surgical control. Victor was the charming face on the campaign posters-he was the figurehead, handsome and articulate. However, Elea

. One of her three burner phones, she reached for it and dialed a number she hadn't used in nearly five years. "Yes?" The voice on the other end spoke. I require a trace run. Digital. Locate the sender of this. Discreetly, Eleanor remarked. "You know the price." She responded, "Charge double," and hung up. She pressed the photo between the pages of Victor's weekly briefing binder after putting it back in the envelope. They were clever if someone was attempting to extort them. However, not smart enough. Eleanor had

. The strings are being pulled by another person. She got up, walked over to him, and patted his chest with a well-maintained hand. "I want you to be focused. Not in a panic. Avoiding snorting in hotel rooms. Victor took a deep breath, taken aback by the ice in her words. She went on to say, "We are being watched." "And I won't let you ruin e