Page 108 of Knot Heirs: Serenity's Reign

"It starts with identifying who we can trust," Ronan said. "There's a ledger your father kept—not digital, physical. Names, debts, favors owed. Last I heard, it was hidden in a property even his closest lieutenants didn't know about."

"Where?"

"That's the problem. I only know it exists, not where." His expression turned grim. "But there's someone who might. The question is whether we can get to them before the Beaumonts do."

Serenity squared her shoulders, her golden-red eyes reflecting the sunrise. "Then that's our first move. Who is it?"

"Carter Greene. Old school accountant who worked for your father for thirty years. Man's a ghost now—disappeared rightafter Marcus died." Ronan ran a hand through his copper hair. "Your father trusted him with everything."

"How do we find him?" Serenity asked, her mind already racing with possibilities.

Ronan's lips curled into a predatory smile. "I've got connections in places even your father didn't. But finding Greene won't be easy." He leaned against the windowsill, muscles tensing beneath his scarred skin. "This is where your business mind comes in. Greene was clever—probably laundered money through legitimate businesses."

Serenity paced the room, her steps measured and deliberate. "I need access to my father's financial records. All of them—not just what the lawyers showed me. If Greene is hiding, he'll still need money. We follow the money, we find Greene."

"And once we have the ledger?"

"We use it as leverage to consolidate power." She stopped, turning to face him. "But we need to be smarter than my father was. The drug trade is unstable—high risk, high volatility. Your security firm is the perfect front. We can channel the Vale shipping operations through it, creating a legitimate enterprise that's bulletproof on paper."

Ronan studied her, green eyes calculating. "You want to go legitimate? That's playing with fire in this world."

"Not entirely legitimate," she clarified. "Just enough to keep the feds off our backs. I'm talking about restructuring, diversifying. The weapons side stays dark, but we shift focus to high-end security contracts—government, private sector."

"Using Vale's political connections," Ronan nodded, connecting the dots. "Smart. The Beaumonts don't have those kinds of connections."

Serenity felt a rush of satisfaction. "Exactly. We become untouchable not through violence, but through becoming too valuable to touch."

"There's still a problem," Ronan crossed his arms. "The fighting rings. They're my territory, and they stay that way."

"I'm not asking you to give them up." Serenity approached him, close enough to feel the heat radiating from his body. "I'm suggesting we elevate them. Make them exclusive. High-stakes gambling, private memberships. The ultra-wealthy love their vices, but they value discretion more."

A smile spread slowly across Ronan's face—not the harsh one he showed the world, but something genuine that transformed his features. "Vale's daughter indeed. You've got your father's vision, but you're sharper than he ever was."

"I had a different education." Her voice was soft but firm. "And different vulnerabilities to guard against."

Ronan's hand found hers, his calloused palm rough against her skin. "We move on Greene first. Then we restructure. But Serenity—" his voice dropped, "—this puts you directly in the line of fire. Are you ready for that?"

She met his gaze unflinchingly. "I was born into fire, Ronan. I just didn't know it until now."

As dawn fully broke over the city, painting the skyline in hues of gold and crimson that matched her unusual eyes, Serenity felt something shift inside her. For the first time since learning of her inheritance, the weight of it didn't feel like a burden but a tool—something she could wield alongside this dangerous Alpha who'd somehow become her ally.

"We start today," she said, certainty flowing through her veins stronger than any Omega instinct. "No one—not the Beaumonts, not my father's old guard—will see us coming."

Ronan's answering grin was all predator. "Together, then."

"Together," she agreed, the word feeling like a vow.

The path ahead was shadowed and uncertain, littered with enemies she hadn't yet met and dangers she couldn't fullyanticipate. But for the first time since her world had been upended, Serenity Vale wasn't afraid.

With Ronan at her side and her father's empire at her fingertips, she was ready to create something entirely new—a force that belonged to her, to them, by choice rather than blood.

21

HEALING HANDS

~SERENITY~

Serenity's eyes fluttered open to golden light filtering through the gauzy curtains.

---