Chapter 14 - Dawn Over ManhattanBy sunrise, the storm had cleared, leaving the New York skyline washed in a brilliant, crisp golden light.
I stood on the expansive wrap-around balcony of the penthouse, the morning breeze whipping through my hair, watching the sun crest over the East River. The city was waking up—millions of people rushing to work, catching trains, opening shops, completely unaware of the corporate war that had been fought and won in the shadows just hours before.
My phone buzzed on the glass table behind me.
I turned back inside and picked it up. It was an encrypted text from Frank: “All board members of Vanguard have resigned. Federal assets transferred to the Daniel Foster Foundation for Pediatric Research. The restructuring is complete.”
I tossed the phone back onto the table and walked into the kitchen.
The scent of freshly brewed dark-roast coffee filled the air. On the counter sat a clean mug, right beside a small, neatly folded note written in familiar handwriting.
“Sir, Lily is eating pancakes this morning. I'll be in at noon to finish the kitchen inventory. — Maya.”
I picked up the mug, took a sip, and smiled.
The world outside was still cutthroat, relentless, and unforgiving. People would still call me cold. They would still say Daniel Foster was a man who understood weakness.
May you like
And they'd be right.
Only now, I didn't plan on exploiting it anymore. I planned on protecting it.
