Sinner's Bluff
By @john1208
The deal is simple: I smile, I lie, and I swindle a smuggler out of his best supply to keep my little brother, Nico, breathing. That's just a Tuesday in Canto, a city choked by toxic smog and ruled by cutthroat alchemical cartels. As the lead negotiator for the Ferraro Syndicate, I thrive on being unapologetic and cheeky. My biggest daily headache? Bastian Salvati, the terrifying head of our rival faction. Every morning, we trade venom and veiled threats over territory lines. But lately, Bastian is distracted. He's obsessively hunting a 'ghost' - a woman he was trapped with during the Great Alchemical Storm, who bedded him to pass the cold and vanished, leaving behind nothing but a bespoke obsidian ear cuff. It's a real shame that ghost is me. If he ever recognizes the splintered-star burn scar on my hip, I'm dead. But as my own trusted boss secretly plots to frame me for a looming gang war, I am forced into an uneasy alliance with my worst enemy. How long can I keep up my shameless facade before the man who wants my head realizes he already possesses my jewelry?
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