Marcus was gone.
Escorted out of the tower not in cuffs—but in silence, which was worse.
The building seemed to exhale as the elevator doors closed behind him. But inside, the walls still whispered his name. His shadow hadn't disappeared—it had only fractured.
Anita stood in the executive briefing suite, now hers in title and presence. A sea of vice presidents, legal counsel, and external auditors watched her closely. Some with awe. Others with fear. A few with resentment, carefully cloaked.
She didn't care.
"Today is not for celebration," she said. "It's reckoning. And restructuring."
She clicked the remote.
Behind her, the screen lit up with three names—departments Marcus had corrupted, filled with allies or puppets.
"Effective immediately, these divisions are frozen pending investigation. If you were part of them, cooperate. If you're innocent, you'll stay. If you're not—walk now."
Silence.
Then chairs shifted. Three men stood up. Walked out. No one stopped them.
It was a start.
Across the city, Marcus watched the stream of events unfold from a private apartment. His apartment. Not for long.
He poured a drink. Didn't sip.
He had underestimated her. Again. Not her ambition. That he had always feared.
He had underestimated her resolve.
The part of her that could play his game and win it, while making it look like reform.
And worst of all—she hadn't just beat him.
She'd made him irrelevant.
Back at GNV, Anita met privately with Julian.
"I need your help," she said simply. "We rebuild from the inside. I need someone who'll tell me the truth. Even when I won't like it."
He smiled—just slightly. "You always liked truth. You just didn't like being surprised by it."
She almost smiled back. Almost.
He stood. "I'm in. But remember, Anita—some of the board may have voted with you out of fear. That's temporary."
"I'm counting on it," she said.
Because she wasn't finished.
She was just getting started.
And across the floor, in a quiet legal department office, a woman no one had noticed in months was on the phone.
"She moved faster than we thought," the voice whispered.
Then silence.
Then: "Yes. We'll wait. She'll make her move. And when she does… we'll be ready."