The attacks began at precisely 3:00 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time, coordinated across four continents with the timing precision that suggested military planning rather than opportunistic violence.Amanda Torres was the first target hit when her personal chef in Singapore prepared breakfast using ingredients that had been contaminated with a slow-acting poison designed to cause organ failure over several hours. The chef served the meal to Amanda's food taster first, a security protocol she'd implemented after The Directorate's virus attack on her AI systems, and the taster collapsed within twenty minutes showing symptoms of acute poisoning.Emergency medical teams saved the taster's life through aggressive treatment while Amanda was rushed to a secure Foundation facility where she remained under guard while toxicology reports confirmed the poison was a sophisticated compound requiring laboratory synthesis. The attack had been planned specifically to defeat her security p

The decision to personally lead the Myanmar operation drew immediate protests from everyone who cared about Derick's survival, but he'd made up his mind before announcing it and no amount of argument would change the choice.Charlotte called within an hour of learning about his plans, her voice tight with the kind of controlled panic that came from watching someone make a decision that seemed suicidal. "You built Titan Holdings while hiding your identity for seven years. You survived assassination attempts, economic warfare, and a literal war against The Directorate. Now you're going to throw all of that away by flying into Myanmar to personally hunt down William Harrington in a fortified compound?""I'm not throwing anything away," Derick replied with more patience than he felt. "I'm finishing what my parents started twenty-seven years ago. Harrington ordered their assassination and he's spent the past months trying to kill everyone I care about. This ends in Myanmar one way or anoth

The encrypted message arrived three weeks after Harrington's death, when Derick had finally begun believing the war might actually be over and normal life could resume."We need to discuss a business opportunity that benefits both of us. I have information about Foundation operations during your conflict with The Directorate that several governments would find extremely interesting. I'd prefer partnership over exposure, but I'm prepared for either outcome. You have forty-eight hours to respond before I begin releasing documentation to international media. Victor Cross."Derick read the message twice while cold recognition settled over the brief peace he'd been enjoying. Victor Cross was Lily's brother, the former intelligence operative who'd worked with Senator Blackwood and had been forced to cooperate with Derick after his network was dismantled. Victor had supposedly disappeared after providing testimony against Blackwood's allies, but apparently he'd been build