One by one, the ripple effect began. People who had been watching the live stream took to their phones, some were dialing hotlines, others were sending anonymous tips, and a few even marching directly to their nearest police outpost. Within minutes, multiple stations were flooded with calls all reporting the same thing: a murder confession, corporate fraud, and the brutal attempt to silence the whistleblower.It didn’t take long for the police to act. Several patrol cars stormed toward the company headquarters. Joshua, Gregory, and the woman who had been sitting smugly in that office only moments ago found themselves surrounded. Their arrogance quickly dissolved into panic as armed officers stormed inside. The employees who had been too afraid to speak earlier finally stepped out of the shadows, pointing fingers and recounting years of abuse, corruption, and exploitation.Joshua protested, shouting at the top of his lungs that he was innocent, that this was nothing more than a scheme.

The news of Joshua’s downfall was still fresh, spreading like wildfire through the city and even beyond the borders of Westview. People whispered about it in buses, coffee shops, and offices, unable to believe that the once untouchable man had been brought down so completely.Kimberly had barely recovered from the shock herself, it was hard to believe that the same Niccolo was now the CEO of the company he used to work as a janitor. She needed someone to complain to, and she knew Rose wasn't an option, so she called Lyla. “Pick up, Lyla,” she muttered, her fingers trembling as she dialed again. But still no answer. That would make it the fifth time in a row, and she found it odd. Lyla was always ready to lend a listening ear to her, even when she was still working. “Where are you, Lyla?”Lyla was standing in the small bathroom in her hotel room. For once, she didn't care about Kimberly or her problems. She had her own storm to face.She stared at her reflection in the mirror that ni

Niccolo was already awake before dawn and had already run the day through his head a dozen times. Although he didn’t need to, the plan had been clear the moment he’d left the cafeteria the day before. Gregory would be first. The man was rotten to the core — fragile ego propped up by stolen merit, a fake degree slipped into a hollow resume, a bully who’d spent his career stepping on people to climb. He would expose him, make an example of him, and the rest of Phoenix Corp would do the rest of the cleaning for him.By eight thirty the office hummed with usual motion, but there was a new alertness in the way people moved — eyes lowered, whispers quick. Jake met Niccolo at the elevator with a tablet clutched in his hand. The two of them rode up in silence, a pair of predators in a steel box.“HR ran everything I asked overnight,” Jake said as the doors opened. “We’ve got audit histories, account metadata, timestamps for degrees and credentials. There’s nothing physically wrong with Gregor

(FLASHBACK)The room erupted with whispers. Some staff exchanged nervous glances, others stiffened in their seats. The atmosphere was a mix of fear, indignation, and faint hope. Niccolo leaned against the podium casually, as if he had all the time in the world, watching their reactions like a predator studying prey.Jake, who stood at his side, folded his arms and surveyed the crowd with the same cold calculation. He didn’t need to say a word, Niccolo's presence alone reinforced that he was no longer the timid man they once knew, he was the man in charge, and no one could challenge that.“You all have forty eight hours to submit your credentials,” Niccolo continued, his voice steady and sharp, cutting through the murmurs. “No excuses, no delays. If you fail to submit on time, I'll consider it a voluntary resignation.”He paused deliberately, letting the weight of his words sink in. His eyes scanned the crowd until they locked on Gregory, who was trying to make himself invisible behind

By the time noon struck, Phoenix Corp was buzzing like a disturbed hive. Gregory’s abrupt removal hadn’t just unsettled the staff — it had changed the way they looked at their new CEO. Fear, awe, suspicion, admiration… every glance Niccolo caught was layered with one of those emotions, and sometimes all at once.Jake had worked fast. Within hours of Gregory being escorted out, an all hands message was sent across every department. Niccolo would address the entire company in the cafeteria at 03:00PM. Mandatory attendance. No excuses.Niccolo sat alone in his office until the hour came. He wasn’t nervous, not anymore — the strange, gifted clarity inside him wouldn’t allow it. But he was aware that this moment would set the tone. One wrong step, and the entire company could see him as a tyrant rather than a leader.When he finally walked into the cafeteria, the room fell into silence. More than twenty pairs of eyes locked onto him. The space smelled faintly of coffee, cologne, and tensio