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CHAPTER 280
Roman Kovac did not react at once, he rarely ever does. When Steven’s encrypted file arrived with nothing but a brief line, We believe you should see this... Roman watched the footage alone. Twice. He did not flinch when Victor Hale’s voice filled the quiet study. “…once she signs, stabilization gives us structured entry.” He did not shift when Voss asked, “And if they resist?” But at the soft, calculated reply, “She’ll think she’s protecting them” his jaw set, barely noticeable. He was not surprised by this, the only thing he did was to calculate. When the screen faded to black, Roman remained motionless for a long moment. Then he reached for his phone. “Get Hale,” he said. Victor Hale arrived within the hour, color already drained from his face. “You sent reassurance memoranda,” Roman began evenly. “Copied to arbitration counsel.” “As instructed,” Hale replied, swallowing. “I authorized leverage tied to stabilization,” Roman said. “Not tailored persuasion.”
CHAPTER 279
The next day began with silence. Steven spoke to the core team before sunrise, Just Helen, Princewill, Sarah, and Harry. On the screen behind them, Kovac-appointed executives moved through internal dashboards. “They think we’ll argue fraud,” Sarah said. “We will,” Princewill replied. “Eventually.” Steven shook his head. “That's not the first thing to do.” Helen looked at him carefully. She was no longer fragile. She was focused. “What are you proposing?” she asked. Steven leaned forward. “We split the battlefield, we let them consolidate operationally,” he continued. “But we isolate the reputational clause.” Princewill frowned. “That clause is the leverage.” “Yes,” Steven agreed. “And leverage cuts both ways.” Harry’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Explain.” Steven tapped the screen, shifting to a different document. “Reputational damages require destabilization attributed to us. Correct?” Princewill nodded cautiously. “In theory, yes.” Steven zoomed further.
CHAPTER 278
Helen Milton hadn’t been in active control for months, but she watched everything. When Steven told her about the clause, something inside her fractured. “I don’t remember that,” she whispered, her voice thin with disbelief. “You wouldn’t,” Princewill said gently. “It was embedded.” Helen stared at the contract summary on the tablet as though the words might rearrange themselves into something familiar. They didn’t. She closed her eyes, replaying that rainy afternoon in her mind. Victor Hale’s voice, his patience, his reassuring smile. Then Adrian Voss calmly spoke to her and all that. “You made me feel like I was saving the company,” she said faintly, almost to herself. Steven knelt beside her chair. His movements were careful, controlled. “You were,” he said softly. “No.” Helen shook her head slowly. Tears pooled but didn’t fall. “I handed him the keys to ruin us and everything we've built.” The admission seemed to hollow her out. Guilt burned hotter than ange
CHAPTER 277
Dawn did nothing to soften Roman Kovac. From the overlook above the harbor, he watched the city wake unaware that its circuitry had already been rewired. Dock 47 swarmed below. Federal vehicles, flashing lights. Men in windbreakers moving with rehearsed urgency. Adrian Voss standing straight-backed despite the pressure folding in around him. Roman lowered the binoculars. Voss had done well. He had absorbed the first wave exactly as designed. Insulation. Roman didn’t need loyalty. He needed layers. And now, the next phase is yet to begin. ***** At the Milton estate, exhaustion tasted metallic. Steven hadn’t slept. Sarah hadn’t stopped pacing. Harry watched the morning coverage with a veteran’s skepticism, arms folded, jaw tight. Princewill arrived in person. “You made them move faster than expected,” he said, placing a tablet on the glass table. “Three subpoenas issued overnight. Asset freezes pending review. Voss is being processed.” “Processed,” Harry mutt
CHAPTER 276
He glanced at the screen and for the first time, his composure fractured. “You triggered it,” Voss said sharply. Steven met his gaze. “You said narrative matters,” he replied evenly. “Let’s test that now shall we?” In the distance— there were sirens, faint at first... then multiplying. Sarah blinked. “You didn’t just send it to journalists.” Steven’s eyes stayed on Voss. “No,” he said quietly. “I sent it to everyone of my people who will take this up to the ends of the earth if need be.” The fog no longer felt protective, it felt exposed. And Adrian Voss, for the first time that night, looked uncertain. ***** Sirens grew louder in the distance, not close enough to be immediate but close enough to complicate things. Adrian Voss glanced at his phone as notifications stacked rapidly... financial alerts, encrypted messages, media pings. Roman Kovac’s name was beginning to surface in places it had never appeared before. Steven’s phone vibrated. He stepped as
CHAPTER 275
By ten p.m., the Milton estate no longer felt like a home. It felt like a command center. Sarah stood over the dining table, now covered in maps, port schematics, and satellite images pulled from Steven’s private contacts. “Dock 47 sits on the eastern freight extension,” she said. “Officially decommissioned. Unofficially? It’s a ghost artery.” Steven adjusted the image. “Container storage on the west side. Fuel depot to the north. Water access wide enough for mid-sized cargo vessels.” Harry frowned. “Police presence?” “Minimal,” Steven replied. “It’s privately leased through three shell companies.” Helen looked between them. “You sound like you’ve been there.” Steven didn’t answer immediately. “I have.” Silence. Sarah looked up sharply. “When?” “Three years ago,” he said. “When they approached me. That’s where the meeting took place.” Harry’s jaw tightened. “And you didn’t think to mention that?” “I didn’t think we’d ever circle back to this,” Steven repl
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