“You sign over your remaining patents to Crane Capital.”

“In exchange, Marcus will discover an accounting error that clears you of the criminal charges.”

“You get to keep your freedom.”

“And you get my life’s work,” Alexander said.

“Your life’s work is already gone,” she said.

“This is the only way you survive.”

Alexander picked up the folder.

He stared at the papers inside.

“You planned this from the very beginning,” he said.

“Business is business, Alexander,” she said. “You should have married me when you had the chance.”

“Then we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

I looked down at the screen.

95%… 98%…

The cloner vibrated once, a tiny haptic buzz against my palm.

The transfer was complete.

I had the decryption key.

But I was still trapped behind the curtain.

Suddenly, Victoria’s phone on the desk began to ring.

She looked down at the screen.

Her expression changed.

She looked up, her eyes narrowing as she stared directly toward the curtain where I was hiding.

The phone screen lit up the dark polished wood of the desk.

“Who is in here?” she whispered.