The tablet screen illuminated the faces of Roman’s three sous-chefs, casting a pale, flickering light across the stainless steel prep counter. Sienna stood behind them, a towel draped over her shoulder, her bandaged hands tucked safely into the pockets of her oversized black chef’s coat.

On the sc

Sienna leaned back against the heavy steel door, her heart hammering wildly against her ribs. Her breath came in short, shallow gasps, the adrenaline from the alleyway confrontation flooding her system. Her hands were shaking, not from pain, but from the sheer, terrifying exhilaration of what she ha

The lights of the Global Culinary Crown arena blazed like miniature suns, casting a blinding, sterile glare over the gleaming stainless-steel stations. The roar of the live audience vibrated through the floorboards, a physical manifestation of the immense pressure pressing down on the fifty elite ch