I sat down on the edge of the unmade bed, clutching the paper cup.

“The board realized Julian was using firm accounts to shield his personal holdings,” she continued. “They are panicking about regulatory exposure.”

“What are they doing?” I asked.

“They’ve launched an emergency internal audit,” Lydia said. “A full forensic investigation of every account Julian has touched over the last five years.”

I felt a cold wave of relief, quickly followed by a sharp spike of dread. “Will they lock him out?”

“They already have,” Lydia said. “They suspended his trading authority and revoked his security clearance two hours ago.”

“Julian will be furious,” I said.

“He is,” she said. “Martin Bell called me screaming. He said we are destroying a hundred-million-dollar fund.”

“Julian destroyed it when he started stealing,” I said.

“Exactly,” Lydia said. “But this makes him incredibly volatile, Elena. He is losing his money, his firm, and his family all at once.”

“He doesn’t know where I am,” I said.

“Let’s keep it that way,” she said. “Do not use your phone for anything but calling me. Do not use your credit cards.”