Gray rubbed his temple as the holographic screen faded. The excitement of completing the mission was still sitting in his chest, but he kept his face composed. He cleared his throat and glanced at Mara. "Guess we'll finally get a decent night's sleep," he said, a small smile slipping through. Mara laughed. "We definitely deserve it." They stayed at the office for another hour or so, working through smaller tasks without any real urgency. It was too early to leave, and the lighter workload now would help them tomorrow. Just before four, they packed up and headed out. By the time Gray stepped into the condo, the exhaustion of the day had settled into his shoulders. He set his bag on the counter, loosened his tie, and dropped onto the couch. His eyes wanted to close. But not yet.He leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "System," he said quietly. "Show me the reward. The land title."The familiar glow appeared in front of him.[Ding!][The Host Has Initiated Reward Collection.][Pe

Waiting was not easy for Gray.Three days had passed since the meeting with Owen, and there had been nothing. No call, no email, not even a brief follow-up message. The silence stretched across every quiet moment at the office."What do you think will happen?" Mara finally said, breaking the surface of it. "Will Conrad actually invest?"She had been working across from him, papers shuffling between her hands. But the question had clearly been sitting there for a while.Gray set down the document he was holding and rubbed the bridge of his nose."I'm not sure anymore," he said.He meant it.The night after Owen left, he had gone to bed genuinely confident. The numbers had been strong. Owen's reaction had been good. It had felt within reach.But one day had become two, and then three. No word from either of them. And in that silence, the certainty he had been holding started to thin.What if Conrad had decided to pass? What if someone more experienced had caught his attention between th

Gray went home with nothing but a smile on his face.Even in the car, even as the city moved past the windows, the smile did not go anywhere. For the first time in longer than he could pinpoint, he was not thinking about work or numbers or the next thing that needed handling.He was just happy.The dinner had gone better than he had allowed himself to hope for. The week had been heavy with doubt and waiting, and tonight had lifted all of it at once.When Daniel pulled up outside Rosewood Residences, Gray stepped out and turned back."Thank you, Daniel.""Of course, Sir. Good night.""You too."Inside, the condo was quiet. Lily was already asleep, her door open just a crack, the soft glow of her night lamp spilling into the hallway. Gray stopped and looked in. She was curled under her blanket with one corner kicked off to the side. He reached in, straightened it gently, and

Gray and Mara followed the two staff members across the lobby floor. Their footsteps were quiet against the marble. Around them, conversations moved at low volume, and the occasional glance their way carried the particular curiosity of a place where most people already knew each other. The staff led them to a private elevator set apart from the main row. Larger, better maintained, with no call button visible from the outside. One of them swiped a keycard and the doors parted. "This takes you directly to the executive level, Sir." "Thank you."Inside, the elevator was nothing like the standard models. Polished wood paneling on the walls. Brass fixtures. The kind of small, deliberate details that cost more than they announced. The doors closed and the numbers began climbing.Gray clasped his hands in front of him. In the glossy wall opposite, he caught their reflections: himself, straight-backed and composed on the outside; Mara beside him, holding her tablet against her chest like i

The twelfth floor of the Davenport Building was quiet except for one room.In the boardroom, leather chairs creaked softly as people settled in. Seven board members took their seats around the table. Some were older, some younger, but they all wore the same expression. Formal. Uncertain.This was not their usual kind of meeting. Normally they received reports from the store, signed off on quarterly statements, or weighed in on minor proposals. An urgent, unscheduled meeting called by Gray himself was something else. Whispers started before the last chair was pulled out. "Do you know what this is about?" an older man with gray hair asked, adjusting his cufflinks. His eyes were sharper than his tone. The woman beside him, maybe mid-thirties, shrugged. "Expansion, from what I heard. And Conrad Everett's name came up." That name moved through the room differently than the others. Heads turned. Eyebrows went up. "Conrad Everett?" another man said, frowning. "He doesn't involve himself