Alma’s whisper wasn’t soft.
It was venom wrapped in silk.
The room seemed to contract around her — the boardroom walls, the cold glass windows, even the air itself — all shrinking until it was just the two of us locked in a stare neither of us broke.
Elias stiffened. Bodhi’s jaw clenched. Amir shifted closer, ready to intervene if she lunged… or if I did.
But I didn’t move.
I needed this answer.
I had earned this answer.
Alma leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs with the elegance of a woman who refused to let handcuffs ruin her posture. Smoke curled from her cigarette like a serpent rising from a basket.
“You want to know why I hate you?” she repeated, louder this time, savoring the words.
“Yes,” I said quietly. “I do.”
Her lips curled into a smile that wasn’t a smile at a
