The first alert arrived at 6:12 a.m.
Damian was already awake.
Sleep had become a negotiation he rarely won, and the city outside his penthouse windows was still wrapped in gray dawn when his phone vibrated across the glass table.
URGENT — MEDIA INQUIRY REQUEST.
He ignored it.
Another notification followed immediately.
Then another.
By the fourth vibration, instinct told him this was no ordinary press cycle.
He picked up the phone.
A headline filled the screen.
BREAKING: BLACKWOOD INDUSTRIES UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR SUSPECTED FINANCIAL IRREGULARITIES.
Damian didn’t react outwardly. His expression remained still, but something inside him settled into cold recognition.
Victor had moved.
Within minutes, every major financial outlet carried the same narrative.
Anonymous whistleblo
