Chapter 123

• Adrian stood there, speechless, his eyes locked on me, searching for some kind of leverage he no longer had.
• I said nothing. I didn’t have to. He could see the truth for himself: I wasn’t the woman he used to know. I wasn’t waiting in anyone’s shadow anymore. I was the interim CEO of Mystic International, a global consultancy that could swing the outcome of a multibillion-dollar acquisition with a single strategy memo. Every word I spoke carried the weight of stock shifts and investor whispers.
• Adrian had brought a small team from a lesser-known VC firm loyal, but tired, underfunded, and clearly running on fumes. He had hoped I would fold under pressure and let Mystic’s resources be absorbed into his chaos.