The Gilded Cage's Keeper

Katarina 'Kat' Volkovich is the best private security specialist in the neon-drenched metropolis of Volgograd-Prime, a shadow forged by grief and hardened by the loss of her former partner. Her new assignment is everything she detests: protecting Aleksei Kostrov, the hedonistic heir to the Kostrov Syndicate, a man whose recklessness is as legendary as his family's corporate empire. Bound by a promise made to his dying father - a man she once respected - Kat is trapped in a 24/7 protection detail with a client she'd rather see take a bullet. Aleksei sees Kat as just another warden in his gilded cage, a cold, sarcastic obstacle to his freedom. But as the attempts on his life escalate from crude attacks to masterfully orchestrated traps, he begins to see the lethal professional beneath her world-weary exterior. Forced into close quarters, their animosity ignites a dangerous spark, blurring the lines between duty and desire. But Kat's past self left more than just a promise; she left a trail of encrypted clues, a hidden agenda that suggests Aleksei's protection is about more than just survival. Can Kat protect him from his enemies without succumbing to a plan her own ghost set in motion?