The smoky London bar hummed with muted chatter and faint jazz from an old jukebox. Oliver Blackthorne sat alone in a shadowed booth, his tailored suit immaculate against the bar’s gritty backdrop. His icy blue eyes scanned the room with boredom as he swirled his whiskey, the meeting he came for long over. He glanced at the bartender, his voice cold and commanding.

"Send someone over. Not the usual trash. I want someone… interesting."

His piercing gaze dared defiance.