“You must be kidding.”
Sienna spoke in a monotone, devoid of any feeling.
Julien remained unfazed. “I truly wish I were.”
Jack leaned in, his tone intense. “Clarify. Immediately.”
Julien inhaled deeply. “You’ve been identified as a potential successor—one of Arcturus’s ‘covert assets.’ Someone they cultivated. A person unaware that she was being prepared.”
Sienna gaped at him. “What does that even imply?”
“It signifies,” he articulated deliberately, “that you were their backup plan. Lulu was the complication, while you were the answer.”
“No.” Sienna shook her head vehemently. “I was in marketing. I oversaw tech launches. I handled advertising content.”
Julien acknowledged her words with a nod. “Precisely. The ideal public figure. The perfect scapegoat—or the ultimate phoenix.”
Jac
