atched stares. With the ghost of her former name hanging over her like a shroud, Sloane stood glued to the polished

ower, she turned to face them, her expression perfectly indifferent. "The show is over,

ators; she turned and took the private staircase instead, her heels striking each step, a s

ilent, anxious shadow,

t as they exploded onto the executive floor. After entering the sacred space of her office, Sloane closed h

t her voice was hardly audible. "The ac

s of water from the sidebar's crystal carafe. Her face

window and pushed open the door. Beneath her lay the city, a realm she had bled and

tech district. Kingman Ventures was housed in a repurposed warehouse with high ceilings, exposed bric

e tossed a stress ball back to a designer, grabbed a protein bar from a communal snack table, and gave a

. Rhett's anchor was Dax, a guy of quiet devotion and solid oak

ick. Taking over her castle?

els and prototypes, and slid into the chair behind it. "Dax, I'm only paying my respect

n it. We have twelve additional offers that are safer and clea

atured two young individuals entwined together on a blanket under a wide Texas sky, their faces lit up with laughter. The woman's face was softer than Sloane's, and her eye

go. The woman in the photo? She is no longer there. She wo

, I could see it in her eyes. His sense of humor vanished as he glanced up at Dax. "Dax, she didn't simply abandon me. She disappeared. She

ce?" Dax's voice wa

tled to the truth. And I will obtain it. by demolishing every barrie

is chair to face a bank of monitors. "Now, let's give the

all stage that had been set up in the lively common area of the corporation.

entitlement mentality for far too long. They erect barriers, monopolize resources, and suppress the very creativity that propel

o the microphones. "Well, I'm here to tell yo

. Reporters yelled inquiries. Rhett merely

could see the certainty in his eyes and the assurance in his postu

stors were all on her phone, which was con

This takeover isn't hostile. It's freeing. Although Prescott Global is a gem, i

with the hammer was the only one who knew where all the fractures were, and the pea

there to spen

oing to