I spoke first. Nobody asked me to. I simply opened my portfolio, looked at the room, and began.
That was the first thing that shifted the air. Not what I said. The fact that I did not wait for permission to say it.
The structural audit clause landed exactly as I intended. Standard language on the surface. Devastating underneath, because an independent audit would pull everything Sinclair Group had been quietly managing for two years into full light, on my timeline, not theirs. Damien’s lead lawyer asked for clarification. I gave it to him completely, in the specific language of someone who knew exactly where every body was buried and exactly how deep.
The lawyer stopped writing mid-sentence.
Beside me Ethan leaned back in his chair, completely relaxed, one arm resting along the back of
