The room was too bright.
Victoria noticed it the moment she stepped onto the stage beside Charles—the lights harsher than necessary, the air sharp with anticipation. This wasn’t just a press conference. It was a spectacle disguised as accountability.
Sarah had orchestrated it that way.
The banner behind them read GREY CONSOLIDATED: TRANSPARENCY FORWARD, the letters clean and corporate, the lie elegant enough to pass as truth if spoken confidently.
Charles stood beside her in a tailored black suit, his posture loose but controlled. No visible armor. No tells. But she knew him well enough now to feel the tension beneath his skin—coiled, patient, dangerous.
This was Sarah’s last move.
And she had chosen the battlefield carefully.
The press filled the hall. Investors. Board members. Pol
