The grand ballroom of the St. Regis Hotel was a shimmering ocean of silk, diamonds, and champagne. The annual Architectural Heritage Charity Gala was the most exclusive event of the season, a place where multi-million-dollar developments were negotiated over canapés and rivalries were cloaked in pol

The silence in the ballroom lasted only a heartbeat before the murmurs erupted into a deafening cascade of whispers. The elite of the city’s real estate and architectural spheres were practically vibrating with the scandal. Clara Vance, the supposed silent workhorse behind Thorne Enterprises, had ju

The Sterling Development offices were a stark contrast to the opulence of the charity gala from a few nights prior. At two in the morning, the executive floor was a cavern of sleek glass, polished steel, and quiet shadows. The only illumination came from the massive digital drafting board in the cen