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NINE RIDERS HIT THE GROUND—THEN THE BROKEN DRAGON LET ONE WOMAN TOUCH THE WING THAT TERRIFIED HIM / Chapter 4 / 20

Chapter 4 - THE SHADOW IN THE ARCHIVES

The Imperial Archive was a monolithic spire rising above the lower academy, its walls lined with centuries of parchment, medical logs, and flight records.

Using the service conduits, Marlo led Alistair through the labyrinth of heat ducts that warmed the library floors. They dropped quietly into the Vault of Decommissioned Assets.

The air smelled of tallow candles and old leather.

Marlo went straight to the locked cabinets marked with the red crest of the Corps Veterinary Division. She pulled a set of modified tension tools from her belt and worked the lock. Click.

"Here," she whispered, pulling out heavy leather-bound ledgers.

Alistair scanned the entries under glowing luminescent glass. "Look at this. Over the last four years, fourteen dragons were declared 'irrecoverable due to behavioral rot.' All signed off by Voss. And all fourteen were transferred to a private contractor named Vanguard Logistics for disposal."

"Who owns Vanguard Logistics?" Marlo asked.

Alistair flipped to the registry page. His eyes widened slightly. "It's a dummy company registered under the name of Lord Vane... the Chairman of the High Military Council."

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My sister flung my ten-year-old son's Christmas gift across her marble k...

For twelve years, my mother had persuaded everyone in our hometown that I'd turned my back on my family to build a career in the Navy. At my father's memorial service, she publicly shamed me in a packed church and ordered me to take off my military uniform. I was ready to walk away when a retired general rose from his seat with Dad's final letter in his hand and said, "Before you humiliate your daughter one more time, Helen, these people deserve to know the truth."

For twelve years, my mother had persuaded everyone in our hometown that...

My husband sl3pped me across the face in front of his entire family and shouted, “Get out of my house! You don't belong here anymore!” Behind him, my mother-in-law smiled with satisfaction, certain she had finally succeeded in driving me away. What neither of them knew was that I secretly owned the mansion they were standing in—and the $10,000 my mother-in-law spent every month on designer clothes, luxury holidays, and personal comforts came straight from my bank account. They thought they were throwing out a helpless woman. They had no idea they were about to lose everything…

My husband sl3pped me across the face in front of his entire family and...

Marlo gasped. "It goes all the way to the top. Voss is just the enforcer."

Before they could digest the discovery, the doors to the archive crashed open.

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Chapter 5 - TRAPPED IN THE SPIRE

Chapter 6 - THE ESCAPE FROM THE TOWER

Chapter 7 - RIDING THE NIGHT

Chapter 8 - THE BLACK DOCK CONFRONTATION

Chapter 9 - THE BATTLE OF STONE AND FIRE

Chapter 10 - THE DRAGON’S VERDICT

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