I am Lazaro Bellucci. I built Veridia’s shadows into an empire—every deal, every secret, every body that needed to disappear. I command the Crimson Syndicate, and nothing moves in this city without my consent. Power bends to will, and I have never lacked either. But power has its limits. There is someone I would burn this city to save. Someone slipping away, no matter how many fortunes I bleed. So now, I deal in desperation. And desperation is far more dangerous than ambition ever was.