Page 7 of Everdoll

I barely nodded. Raymond… My Remi. Why was his face on the giant screen of The 12-Hour Bureau? Why did he have to get in my way like that?

If Raymond had been up to something he shouldn’t, he always knew how to cover his tracks. In all these years, not once had his name shown up, no document, not even a passing remark. So why was he suddenly on our radar? I was scared, scared of that weird urge to protect him. I didn’t know what I would do if the day came when we had to catch Raymond.

Fortunately, no one at the Bureau found anything, the case was closed with another suspect, and I never saw him on the Bureau screen again.

At my main job at the news agency, however, the situation was completely different.

Raymond Loxton refused to give us an interview. Every damn time.

We were the only agency on the entire planet he refused to give an interview to. No matter which employee made the offer, they were all turned down. I wasn’t the only one who noticed this; the journalists would occasionally come up with theories about it, too.

The most popular theory is his ex-lover was at this agency, so that was why he was avoiding.

I always flinched whenever I heard these rumors. No way. He couldn’t possibly hate me that much. After all, he always acted professionally, didn’t he? If he had a problem, he should’ve been the one to confront me.

Because I couldn’t. Not after the way we ended. That final fight, all that resentment left rotting between us… I’d been avoiding him ever since deliberately. But now, a ridiculous thrill moved through me. I had to be honest with myself: some part of me had been waiting for this. Even underneath the fear, I wanted a confrontation for years.

God, I just missed him terribly. What a narcissist I am.

Sometimes, of course, I imagined what it would be like if we met again. Did he forget me? Does he hate me? What would he do if he saw me?

But this ban? Nothing could have prepared me for this.

I crushed my cigarette butt into the gravel and immediately lit a second one, waiting for the anger to subside. Well, it didn’t. My mind was a battlefield, and I couldn’t tell which side had taken the heavier losses.

By the time Prisne and Silvia finally stepped outside, the pavement was littered with filters. I hurriedly stuffed the pack into my bag and forced a wave.

“How did it go? Did you learn anything?”

“Well… We’re kind of fucked.” Prisne’s serious face laced with fury, her brows knitting. “Silvia’s chip is currently at Lesse, more specifically Yunna’s place. Another bet is happening tonight, and it’s expected to be even more crowded than usual. We… have to go right now. We need to get that chip before the higher-ups.”

I fell silent upon hearing the familiar area, fear clawed at my chest. I knew better than to hesitate. As a reporter, I should’ve been willing to go anywhere on the planet. Yet there was still one place I’d rather die than be sent to.

Lesse.

The Lesse district, where bribes, corruption, and all kinds of gambling ran rampant, was the biggest exception on Mars. It lay within the rotten Buzz, yet it sprawled as a massive hub where all the nobles and wealthy from the capital gathered. It was different from the poor village environment of the Buzz, from the fake happiness of the capital as well. The most secret agreements were signed there, the bloodiest revenge was carried out. Not everyone could go to there, those who did were the chosen few, guests at the kings’ table.

And no one ever went Lesse without a reason. There was always a negotiation, always a reckoning. Since the day humanity set foot on Mars, Lesse had been the stage for power and absolute fear.

But what terrified me wasn’t the playground of the elite.

It was the man who ruled over it, the one who was always there, lounging around Yunna Bar as if he owned the place.

As I said, being tied to Raymond in any way was my worst nightmare, and Lesse was strictly off-limits. The farther I stayed from him, the better. After four whole years of avoiding that district, I’d convinced myself it could go on like this forever.

Because I knew. The day I faced him would likely be the day I died.

Either I’d have a heart attack from the tension, or the moment those piercing blue-green eyes pinned on me, his hands would wrap around my throat. It was like a prophecy, etched deep into my soul: I had to stay away from him.

But after what I learned today… Should I really do that? Was I ever able to?

He’s the only nightmare you haven’t faced yet. How much longer will you delay?

“You can return to the capital, Mina. Thank you for coming.”

“No need, Pris.” I forced myself to smile. I hadn’t made such a critical decision in a long time. My monotonous life had been peaceful, but now my heart was pounding with a foreign excitement.

“I’ll come with you. I’ve missed Lesse.”