Chapter 1: The Containment The silence in the Hawthorne Museum was absolute. Every eye was locked on me. The shattered crystal on the marble floor lay between Grant Holloway and myself like a drawn line in the sand. He stared at the jagged shards, then slowly lifted his gaze to the men in tactical black uniforms who had just stepped from the hidden alcoves.

Chapter 9: The Confession

The silence in the subterranean vault was suffocating. Above us, I knew a hundred of the most powerful people in the city were listening in absolute terror.

Grant fell to his knees. The fight was completely drained out of him. He looked at the floor, tears finally spilling from his eyes. It was a pathetic sight.

“I hit her,” Grant sobbed into the microphone. “I assaulted Mara Vale.”

“Keep going,” I prompted.

“My father… Richard Holloway. He owns the judges. He runs the foundation as a front. He washes cartel money. The ledgers are here. It’s all here.”

He stayed on his knees, weeping like a broken child.

I hit the button on the tablet.

UPLOAD COMPLETE.

“It’s done,” I said. I looked at Vance. “Take him back upstairs. It’s time to open the doors.”

We loaded Grant back into the glass elevator. The ride up was silent. When the floor above separated and we rose back into the main gallery, the atmosphere had entirely shifted.

The arrogant billionaires and furious politicians were gone. In their place were terrified, defeated people. Some were crying. Some were frantically texting their lawyers, realizing the cell jammers had just been dropped.

The screens behind the auction block were now broadcasting live news networks. Every single channel was breaking the story. The Holloway Empire was collapsing in real-time.

“Attention,” I said, my voice echoing through the room.