Chapter 196

• I had received the invitation weeks ago. I hadn’t planned on attending the lavish birthday gala for Hazel Sterling, the matriarch of Sterling Holdings and one of the most formidable women in New York’s private equity circles. But absence, in my case, would have been its own statement and I was not about to give the media or my critics any ammunition.
• So, I slipped into my sleek black cocktail dress, adjusted the delicate diamond studs I wore like armor, and walked into the event like I still belonged in that world even if most thought I no longer did.
• The ballroom of the Sinclair Tower buzzed with whispers and champagne-fueled speculation. And when I caught wind of the vicious gossip about Cassandra my mentee and one of the brightest new players in sustainable tech it ignited something deep within me. It wasn’t just petty shade. It was calculated. And it burned.