Page 95 of The Hunter's Empire

The steady vibration of the jet hums beneath my feet as I turn another page of the magazine resting in my lap. The cabin is quiet except for the distant sound of the engines and the occasional clink of ice shifting in the glass beside me.

Normally, I would be working through emails or reviewing reports during a flight like this. There is always something demanding my attention, some problem waiting to be solved the second I land.

Today, for once, I ignore all of it. My attention remains fixed on the familiar face staring back at me from the cover.

Keith.

I swear there was a time when seeing my brother on the front page of magazines felt surreal. Now it feels almost routine.

The headline stretches boldly across the page, praising his latest venture and detailing the projected impact it is expected to have on international markets. The article paints him as a visionary businessman whose instincts rarely fail him.

Reading it, I can already imagine the flood of interviews, invitations, and networking opportunities that will follow.

A smile tugs at my lips as I continue reading. The article mentions Elysian Haven several times, describing it as one of the most ambitious luxury projects of the decade.

Elysian Haven. In a few short hours, I'll be there. The thought lingers long after I've finished reading the paragraph.

Closing the magazine slightly, I find myself looking past the printed words and toward the world beyond the cabin. My gaze drifts toward the window, where the afternoon sun spills across an endless expanse of blue ocean stretching toward the horizon.

From this height, everything below looks peaceful. Small. Distant. I wish life actually felt that simple.

The past few months have been exhausting. The empire has demanded more attention than ever, and every victory seems to create three new problems waiting around the corner. There are days when I feel as though I spend more time managing chaos than living my own life.

That is probably why I've been looking forward to this wedding. Not because of the ceremony itself, but because of what it represents. In a few days, Keith will marry Aurelia, and despite everything they've been through, that still feels slightly unreal.

Not because I ever doubted they would end up together. The surprising part is how much they changed each other along the way.

Before Aurelia, Keith carried every problem as though it belonged to him alone. Somehow, she convinced him there was more to life than surviving one crisis after another.

A quiet chuckle escapes me. If he heard me thinking that, he'd spend the next hour insisting he was perfectly fine before he met her.

The idiot.

Still, the thought of seeing everyone again leaves a warmth in my chest that catches me off guard. For once, we're gathering because something good is happening, and after everything our family has endured, that feels worth celebrating.

I am still staring out at the ocean when my phone suddenly vibrates against the armrest beside me. A smile tugs at my lips the moment Aurelia's name flashes across the screen. Of course it's her.

With the wedding only days away, she's been calling at least twice a day, usually to discuss something she suddenly considers urgent.

I answer before the second ring.

"Please tell me you're already on your way."

I laugh before I can stop myself. "Nice to know you're happy to hear from me too."

"Iamhappy to hear from you." Aurelia says quickly. "But I need confirmation that you're actually coming because your brotherhas reached a level of wedding-induced stress that should probably be studied."

My smile widens. "That bad?"

"Worse."

I can hear movement on the other end of the line, followed by a familiar male voice protesting somewhere in the background. "Tell her that's not true."

Aurelia ignores him completely. "He changed the seating chart again."

I close my eyes. "No."

"Yes."