My voice sounded calm, much calmer than I felt.

“My grandfather built it,” I said. “And you spent thirty years trying to erase him.”

I stepped up to the desk.

The paper in the ledger was thick and smelled of old dust.

I found the line marked for the successor of the Cross trust.

My hand was steady as I lowered the pen to the paper.

I signed my name.

*Valerie Cross.*

The ink dried almost instantly under the dim green light.

“It is done,” Nathaniel said.

He took the ledger and closed it.

“As of this moment, Valerie Cross holds fifty-one percent of the voting shares of Sterling Enterprises,” Nathaniel said.

Miranda sank into the leather chair behind the desk.

She looked smaller now, the shadows hiding the sharp lines of her face.

Julian did not look at her.

He kept his eyes on the floor, his hands shoved deep into his pockets.

“What happens now?” Julian asked.

“The board will be notified in the morning,” Nathaniel said. “A special session will be called at nine.”

“And the Syndicate?” Elias asked, his voice low.