The neon lights of Manhattan blurred through the rain-streaked window of the taxi.

At 8:15 AM the following morning, Ethan Marlowe walked into the corner office of Marlowe Technologies on the 38th floor of a Midtown skyscraper. He was exhausted. After the disaster at the Halston Hotel, he had spent four hours dealing with lawyers, trying to quietly bail Vanessa out of the precinct without news leaking to the press.

Vanessa sat on his leather sofa, her face pale, holding an ice pack against her eyes. Her neck looked bare and vulnerable without the stolen diamond necklace.

"It's going to be fine," Ethan said, pouring himself a espresso. "My family lawyers said Claire’s stunt with the police was just an emotional outburst. We’ll offer her five million instead of two. Money fixes everything with people who don't have power."

"She looked at me like I was a bug under her shoe, Ethan!" Vanessa hissed, setting down the ice pack. "She didn't cry! She didn't scream! She called the cops on her own sister!"

"Because she’s cold, Vanessa. She’s always been cold," Ethan said, leaning against his mahogany desk. "That’s why I left her for you. You have passion. Claire is just a human calculator."

Before Vanessa could respond, the heavy glass doors of the executive suite swung open.

Ethan’s senior executive assistant, Mark, rushed in, looking pale. "Mr. Marlowe, there are people in the lobby. Federal process servers and court-appointed forensic accountants."

Ethan frowned, setting his espresso cup down with a sharp clatter. "What are you talking about? What accountants?"

Behind Mark, three men in dark suits and a tall, silver-haired man carrying a battered leather briefcase walked into the room.

Ethan recognized the silver-haired man instantly. His blood ran cold.

"Julian Vance," Ethan breathed. "You retired five years ago."

"I came out of retirement for a special occasion, Ethan," Julian said smoothly, stepping to the center of the office. He pulled a thick stack of court orders from his briefcase and laid them directly onto Ethan’s desk. "I am here representing Claire Marlowe and Aegis Holdings Limited."

"Aegis Holdings?" Ethan scoffed, trying to regain his composure. "That’s just a third-party IP vendor we pay a standard monthly maintenance fee to. What does that have to do with my divorce?"

Julian smiled—a cold, predatory expression that made Vanessa shrink back into the sofa cushions.

"You really don't know, do you?" Julian said quietly. "Ethan, did you never wonder why the original patent for the Nexus-9 logistics engine was held under Aegis? Did you never check the beneficial ownership filings in Delaware?"

Ethan’s jaw tightened. "My legal team handled the initial registration six years ago!"

"Your legal team reviewed a license agreement," Julian corrected him firmly. "Claire Marlowe is the sole seventy-five percent owner of Aegis Holdings. Her mother’s estate holds the remaining twenty-five percent. In short, Ethan: your company doesn't own the engine that runs every single contract you have with Amazon, Walmart, and FedEx. You rent it from your wife."

Ethan felt as if the floor beneath his feet had suddenly tilted thirty degrees. He grabbed the edge of his desk. "That’s impossible. I built Marlowe Technologies!"

"You sold it," Julian countered deadpan. "Claire engineered it. And because you attempted to fraudulently expropriate her IP rights during divorce negotiations last night, Aegis Holdings has officially issued a Notice of Material Breach. You have thirty days to produce fifty million dollars in unpaid license royalties and back-audited revenues, or your license to Nexus-9 will be permanently revoked."

Ethan’s head spun. "Fifty million?! We don't have fifty million in liquid cash! Everything is tied up in our new expansion!"

"Then I suggest you find it," Julian said calmly. He turned his eyes toward Vanessa, who was staring at him in sheer horror. "Oh, and Miss Vance? The District Attorney’s office has formally upgraded the charge regarding the diamond necklace from simple dispute to Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, given the appraised value of eighty-five thousand dollars. The arraignment is set for Tuesday."