The ink hadn’t dried on the alliance scroll, but the fire Sophia had lit beneath it was already spreading.
The Crestwood–Redwood alliance was, in theory, a political masterstroke—balanced, beneficial, forward-thinking.
But with Sophia overseeing it, it had become something else entirely.
It had become a weapon.
And Ethan?
He was the target.
---
Redwood–Crestwood Inter-Trade Desk
The stack of parchment dropped onto Ethan’s desk with a sharp thud.
His junior aide, Lior, grimaced as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Third rejection this week.”
Ethan flipped the scroll open and scanned it.
“Clause 17B uses outdated land measurement terminology,” he read aloud, deadpan.
Lior nodded. “Except those terms are taken directly from Crestwood’s official topography logs. She signed off on t
