The past week had been the longest of Sarah's life.Kevin's phone went straight to voicemail every time she called. His texts showed as delivered but never read. The apartment in Navigli sat empty, his remaining clothes still hanging in the closet, his toothbrush still in the cup by the sink, but no sign that he'd been back since the morning he walked out with that small black suitcase.The anger she'd carried for the first three days had slowly rotted into something worse. Anxiety. The creeping, persistent feeling that something fundamental had shifted and she'd missed the moment it happened. Kevin had always come back before. Always cooled down, always swallowed his pride, always chose her over his own hurt feelings. But a week of total silence was new. A week of complete disappearance was terrifying.On top of everything, Sterling Corporation's pharmaceutical division had erupted into a public relations crisis involving contamination allegations that demanded her personal attention

Sarah stepped out of the SUV first, straightening her blazer and walking toward the cluster of military officers waiting near the observation tent. General Orsini stood at the front, flanked by two colonels and a group of soldiers in field gear who would be conducting the live fire tests."General Orsini." Sarah extended her hand with a composed smile. "Thank you for accommodating the schedule. Sterling Corporation values this partnership deeply."General Orsini shook her hand and returned the greeting with practiced courtesy. Then his eyes moved past her shoulder, scanning the convoy of vehicles, the engineering team unloading equipment, the faces emerging from the SUVs one by one.His expression shifted. The politeness cooled into something harder."Where is Kevin Crown?"The question landed like a dropped weight. Sarah kept her smile in place, but the effort it took was visible to anyone paying attention."Kevin is unavailable due to personal matters. Jasper Doom has been overseein

The last soldier set down his rifle and stepped back from the testing station without a word. The silence that followed was heavier than anything Sarah had prepared herself for. Every face on that field carried the same expression, and none of it was good.Jasper moved forward before Sarah could speak. His jaw was tight, his hands clasped behind his back like a man bracing for impact."Gentlemen, I need to understand what just happened here." His voice came out steady but there was a crack underneath it, something barely held together. "These weapons were tested extensively before today. If there are specific concerns, I need to hear them now."One of the senior soldiers glanced at his squad before answering. He looked uncomfortable, like a man being asked to deliver news nobody wanted to hear."Look, on paper your numbers are impressive. I will give you that." He picked up the rifle nearest to him and held it loosely, turning it in his hands. "But this thing is not built for a battle

Sarah leaned her head against the car window and closed her eyes. The leather seat vibrated softly beneath her as the vehicle merged onto the highway, but she felt none of it. Her mind was still standing on that testing field, listening to the officer's voice tear through everything she had built.The military partnership was not just another contract. It was the backbone of Sterling Group's weapons division, the one account that kept the entire department alive. Losing it would not just hurt the company. It would gut it.And for the first time, sitting in the quiet of that car with her eyes shut and her pride stripped bare, she understood just how much of that backbone had been Kevin Crown.Every successful delivery. Every acceptance test that passed without a single complaint. Every time the military renewed their trust, it had been because of him.Not because of the Sterling name. Not because of any boardroom presentation. Because Kevin walked onto those fields and spoke the langua

Walters was on his feet. His mouth was open. The first word was already forming on his tongue when Jasper Doom suddenly pushed his chair back and stood up.The sound of the chair scraping against the floor cut through the room like a gunshot. Every head turned.Jasper's face was drained of color. His body swayed slightly as he rose, one hand pressing against the edge of the conference table to keep himself upright. He looked like a man who had not slept in days, and the effort of simply standing seemed to cost him everything he had left."Stop." His voice was quiet but it carried across every corner of the room. "Chief Engineer Walters, please sit down."Walters blinked. His mouth closed. He looked at Jasper with an expression that was equal parts confusion and suspicion."This is not his fault." Jasper's eyes moved to Sarah, and when he spoke again his voice cracked at the edges like thin glass. "Sarah, everything that happened today is because of me. All of it. Every single failure.