Chapter 75

• The room buzzed with the quiet hum of focus and tension. Floor-to-ceiling glass offered a glittering view of the city skyline, but no one was looking. All eyes were locked on Rafael Steele, CEO of Vanguard International a man as commanding in a boardroom as he was ruthless in a buyout.
• He leaned over the polished conference table, his lean frame taut with anticipation. The glow from the wall-sized digital map bathed his face in icy blue, but his eyes burned with that wild, calculating fire only he possessed.
• “We go all-in at dawn,” he said, his voice low and electric. “Once we take over Ilyrian Holdings, we’ll have access to their distribution hubs, their warehouses, their supplier contracts everything. They’re loaded, and they’ve brought their full stockpile into the market trying to outbid us. But that’s going to be their downfall.”