2026-05-21 00:02:02The Horizon Lounge took up the entire 47th floor. Floor-to-ceiling windows looked out over Manhattan, and the lighting was low enough to make everyone look better than they deserved. Vanessa’s divorce party was already in full swing by the time Erick arrived.
He spotted Dominique near the bar, laughing at something Martin Clarke had said. She had one hand resting lightly on his arm. They looked comfortable together. Natural. Erick loosened his tie a fraction and moved further into the room. Vanessa spotted him first. Her red dress caught the light as she waved him over, a little too enthusiastically. “Erick! You actually came.” She leaned in and kissed his cheek, leaving a trace of perfume and wine. “Dominique said you might skip it. Still sulking about that video?” “I’m here,” he said simply. She patted his chest, letting her hand linger. “You clean up well. It’s almost unfair that Domi keeps you hidden away.” Her voice dropped playfully. “If I were her, I wouldn’t make that mistake.” Erick gave a small, polite smile and stepped back. His gaze drifted across the room and landed on a girl sitting alone on one of the velvet sofas. She looked young — too young for this crowd. Maybe nineteen. Long blonde hair, short black dress, heels she clearly wasn’t used to wearing. She kept glancing toward Michel like she was waiting for instructions. Erick’s jaw tightened slightly. Michel appeared beside him holding two glasses. “Here. Don’t stand around looking like you wandered into the wrong party.” Erick took the glass but didn’t drink. “Thanks,” he said. Michel smirked. “Loosen up. You’re lucky to even be invited.” Across the room, Martin was whispering something to Dominique. She laughed again, softer this time. Erick watched them for a moment, then looked away. Remi arrived a few minutes later, still in her work clothes, looking like she wanted to be anywhere else. She made her way straight to him. “You shouldn’t be here,” she said under her breath. “Dominique asked me to come.” Remi glanced around nervously. “This whole thing feels off. Vanessa, Martin… they’ve been acting strange all week. I think they’re planning something.” Erick nodded once. “I know.” “Then why are you—” “Because I’m tired of avoiding it.” A woman with striking red hair approached them — Anya Volkov. Erick remembered her from the wedding. Dominique had never liked her. “Erick,” Anya said, smiling as she tilted her head. “I’ve heard stories about you.” “Most of them are probably true,” he replied dryly. She laughed and moved closer. Her perfume was strong. “We should play a game. Something to liven things up. Truth or drink?” Vanessa appeared at her side, grinning. “Oh, I like this idea.” Several phones were already out. Michel had his camera angled casually in their direction. Remi stepped forward. “This isn’t funny.” “It’s just a game,” Anya said lightly. “What’s the harm?” Erick looked at Dominique across the room. She was watching him now, her expression unreadable. He picked up the glass Michel had given him earlier. “Fine,” he said. “Let’s play.” Vanessa took the glass from Erick’s hand with a playful smile. She took a small sip, then leaned in close. Before he could react, she kissed him. A phone flashed nearby. Erick let it happen for a second, then gently pulled back. Vanessa’s expression changed almost immediately. Her smile faltered. She blinked hard, as if the room had tilted. “Whoa…” she muttered, grabbing the edge of the bar to steady herself. Martin stood up straighter. Dominique frowned. Vanessa laughed nervously, but her knees were already buckling. “What the hell was in that…?” Anya moved first, trying to catch her. Several people rushed over. Michel lowered his phone, looking confused. Erick calmly took a napkin and wiped his mouth. He looked across at Martin. “You spiked it,” he said quietly. Martin’s face hardened. “Watch your mouth.” Erick didn’t raise his voice. “You wanted pictures. Or worse.” The mood in their little group shifted. The laughter around them died down as people started paying attention. Dominique stepped forward. “Erick, that’s enough.” He turned to look at her. “You knew?” She hesitated for half a second — just long enough. “I thought they were going to play a stupid prank. I didn’t think they’d actually…” She trailed off. Erick nodded slowly. “Right.”
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Chapter 84—We Attack
The first contract delay arrived at 9:03 a.m. as a polite email.A mid-tier logistics partner that had worked with GD Tech for four years requested a temporary pause on a pending infrastructure renewal agreement. The language was careful. They cited internal review processes and the ongoing federal matters surrounding the company. No accusation. No open withdrawal. Just a pause that could stretch indefinitely if no one pushed back.By noon there were three more.Erick read each one in the restricted operations room without comment. The federal oversight already limited major transfers and system changes. Now the quiet isolation the intermediary had described was beginning to take shape in real time. Partners were not cutting ties. They were simply becoming cautious in ways that required no public explanation.Remi stood beside him, arms folded. “They’re doing exactly what he said they would. No speeches. No visible attack. Just distance.”“Yes,” Erick said. “And distance is harder to
Chapter 83— What We’re Searching For
The two dark cars stayed with them for eleven blocks.Jacqueline took a sudden left, then two rights through narrower streets. The cars adjusted without hurry, as if they already knew the route options. When she finally cut through a service alley and emerged on a different avenue, the tails were gone — but the message was clear.They had been allowed to notice.Back at the secondary facility, the atmosphere had changed. No one raised their voice. No one wasted movement. Erick stood at the central table while Aria replayed the surveillance fragments she had captured from street cameras. The vehicles were clean. No plates that led anywhere useful. No faces visible through the tinted glass.“They’re not trying to grab us,” Jacqueline said. “Not yet. They’re showing us they can sit on our shoulder whenever they want.”Remi stood with her arms folded tightly. “The general reported the conversation immediately. That was the point of letting you walk out.”Erick nodded. “He gave us a name f
Chapter 82— Very Confident or Very Stupid
The car stopped two blocks short of the address.Erick sat in the back seat with the window cracked just enough to let in the cold air. Remi was beside him. Jacqueline drove. No one spoke for a full minute after the engine cut off.The building was a quiet brick residential block on a tree-lined street. No doorman. No visible cameras at street level. The kind of place that looked forgettable on purpose.“Third floor,” Jacqueline said. “Corner unit. He’s been inside for forty minutes.”Erick checked the time. “We don’t go up. We wait.”Remi’s hands rested still in her lap. “If he panics—”“He won’t see us,” Erick said. “Not yet.”They watched.At 9:17 the general left the building. He was older than the photographs, silver hair cut short, dark coat, walking with the controlled pace of a man who had spent decades expecting to be observed. He carried nothing in his hands. A black car was already waiting at the curb. He got in without looking around.The car pulled away.Jacqueline follow
Chapter 81—Silent Pressure
The federal oversight order hit at 7:14 a.m.It arrived as a sealed digital packet, locked behind three layers of encryption and stamped with a court seal that basically said, don’t even try to argue.Erick read it once in the secure conference room of the secondary GD Tech site, then read it again, slower.While the investigation into the Global Tech Summit and the related system activity continued, operational control of Gerard Dominion Technologies was being placed under temporary federal review. From that moment on, any major money transfers, core system changes, or public statements needed prior clearance.He set the tablet down without saying a word.Remi watched him from across the table. The exhaustion from the Summit was still written all over her face, but she kept her posture
Chapter 80 — First Names
The temporary safe house was quieter than the Summit had been, but the silence carried more weight.Erick sat at the central table with the lights dimmed. The damp navy suit had been replaced by a clean black shirt and dark trousers, though the bandages under the fabric still pulled when he moved. Remi sat across from him. Jacqueline leaned against the wall. Aria’s hologram hovered above the table, already pulling data streams.“We start with the two names Dominique gave us,” Erick said. “The retired general and the private equity woman. We treat everything else as noise until we have a real trail.”Aria’s interface expanded. “I’ve cross-referenced both names against every financial and communications log we currently control. The general is easier to surface. Retired three years ago. Still holds informal advisory roles on two defense technology committees. The woman is harder. She operates through a private equity fund registered under three different holding companies. Most of the r
Chapter 79 — The Next Layer
Remi remained beside him, her hand still resting on the table near his.“They didn’t even flinch when you asked about the Clarkes,” she said quietly. “That’s not caution. That’s protection.”Erick nodded once. “Leroy lost the public battle today. His name is toxic now. Michel is finished. Evelyn will spend the rest of her life managing the fallout. But the Clarkes walked out of here without a single question. That doesn’t happen by accident.”He stood and walked to the glass wall, looking down at the main hall. Leroy was no longer visible. Neither were Martin nor the Congressman. The space they had occupied was already being cleared by event staff and federal personnel.Jacqueline entered the room a moment later, followed by Adrian. Ivan waited just outside with two of his men.“Federal agents are setting up a temporary command post on the third floor,” Jacqueline reported. “They’re treating the recordings as primary evidence against the Laurents. But there’s no active warrant for Mar
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