The object Cassandra withdrew from her leather bag was a thick, faded blue envelope tied with a frayed ribbon.

The glass towers of Prescott Technologies stood dark against the snowy Denver night. We arrived in a black SUV, Marcus leading the way with two armed guards trailing behind us.

The main lobby was eerily quiet. The security guard at the front desk was unconscious, slumped over his terminal—sedated with a chemical agent.

"Stay behind me," Marcus ordered, drawing his weapon as we stepped toward the private executive elevators.

We took the elevator up to the 40th floor. The glass doors slid open to reveal the dimly lit server room. Through the reinforced glass walls, we could see a lone figure standing over a master terminal, plugging a hardware device into the mainframe.

It was Julian.

"Julian!" I shouted, stepping into the room.

Julian spun around, his face pale under the harsh blue light of the server monitors. A manic, desperate look burned in his eyes.

"Damon," Julian sneered, holding up a small black hard drive. "You shouldn't have come here."

"Put the drive down, Julian," I said, stepping forward while Marcus kept his gun trained on him. "It's over. The police are on their way."

"Over?" Julian laughed bitterly, his voice echoing in the metallic room. "I built this company with you! I spent five years in your shadow, managing your mess, making sure your fragile ego didn't collapse while you mourned your dead sister! And what did I get? Four percent equity and a kick out the door because you found your bastard kids!"

"Shut your mouth!" I snarled, stepping into his space, ignoring Marcus's warning gesture. "You stole three years of my life with my children! You lied to me!"

"I protected the bottom line!" Julian screamed, holding the hard drive over a demagnetizing tray. "If I press this button, every byte of research on the Merritt platform will be wiped. Calder will buy the remnants for pennies, and your precious non-profit foundation will never see a single cent!"

"Julian, stop!" Cassandra called out, stepping out from behind Marcus.

Julian froze, staring at her in surprise. "Cassandra... you always were the anchor dragging him down."

"Look at yourself," Cassandra said, her voice steady and calm despite the tension in the air. "You're destroying your own life for money. Damon offered you partnership, trust, and respect for five years. You betrayed him because you were greedy."

"You don't know anything about business!" Julian barked.

"I know about family," she replied coldly. "And I know that a man who has to steal and destroy to win is already a loser."

Julian hesitated for a split second, his finger trembling over the wipe button.

That second was all Marcus needed.

With lightning speed, Marcus closed the distance, grabbing Julian's wrist and twisting it downward. The hard drive clattered to the floor, rolling to a stop at my feet. Julian shrieked in pain as Marcus pinned him against the server rack, cuffing his hands behind his back.