The boardroom was a cavern of tension, the silence ringing in the aftermath of Sienna's challenge. She walked past the row of seated, anxious board members, her heels clicking rhythmically against the hardwood floor. She didn't look at Liam Thorne or Chloe Sterling as she made her way to the head of

The news hit the financial networks like a seismic shockwave.

By noon, the chyrons on every major news channel were scrolling the same devastating headline: *THORNE DEVELOPMENTS CEO ARRESTED FOR FEDERAL FRAUD; VANGUARD HOSPITALITY SECURES BILLION-DOLLAR ASSETS.*

Within two hours of the arrest, Th

The grand ballroom of the Vanguard Plaza Hotel was a sea of flashing cameras, murmuring reporters, and high-society elites. The crystal chandeliers cast a brilliant, glittering light over the room, illuminating the massive Vanguard Hospitality logo projected onto the backdrop of the main stage.

Th