“I will announce the transition.”

“And Valerie?” Elias asked.

“She will be introduced as the primary shareholder,” Julian said.

I felt a strange tightness in my chest.

For twenty years, I had dreamed of this moment.

But now that it was here, the weight of it was immense.

“I don’t need a public spectacle, Julian,” I said.

“You deserve the truth to be known,” he replied.

“And the board needs to see that we are not hiding.”

He looked toward the open front doors, where a few reporters were still lingering.

“If we do not control the narrative, they will destroy the company before sunrise.”

“He is right, Valerie,” Nathaniel said.

“The Sterling name is tarnished tonight.”

“Only the Cross name can clean it.”

I nodded slowly.

“Alright,” I said. “We do it your way.”

“Let us go to the office,” Julian said.

“The quiet office on the third floor.”

We walked back up the stairs, leaving the empty foyer behind.

The remnants of the party lay scattered on the tables—half-empty glasses, crumpled napkins.

It looked like a shipwreck.