The pact solidified in the days that followed, a new, unspoken constitution for their fractured kingdom. Kaelan was the sword and shield, Elara the architect and conscience, Liam the heart and moral ledger. They moved with a grim, efficient alliance, parsing the digital vault’s horrors into neat folders for the DOJ, preparing Vanderbilt Holdings for a very public, controlled demolition.
It was during one of these sessions, sorting through records of environmental violations Charles had buried, that Liam found it. Not another crime, but a relic.
A photograph, digitized and filed under Misc. Assets - Newport.
It showed a much younger Charles Vanderbilt, not yet hardened into the monster they knew, standing on a sun-drenched dock. Beside him, laughing freely, her face tilted to the sun, wa
