The summit was an illusion.
Gleaming floors, hushed voices, designer suits — all wrapped around a lie. But Ava walked through it like she owned the place, heels clicking against marble as security parted without question.
She had the name. The poise. The legacy.
Even if it had nearly destroyed her.
On stage, a panel of pharmaceutical CEOs droned on about innovation and integrity while Ava, seated in the third row, counted the lies behind every carefully chosen word.
She knew what this summit really was: a laundering front for Wolfe's empire. A place to polish reputations and silence inconvenient truths.
And tonight, she would break the silence.
---
Meanwhile, across the city, Damien stood inside the mirrored elevator of Wolven Global Tower — a fortress of steel and secrets.
He wore a stolen identity. A badge clipped to his suit read Marcus Halden, CEO of Brecht Biopharma. His expression was unreadable, his voice cold when he greeted the receptionist in flawless Swiss German.
Lucien's voice crackled in his earpiece.
"Two minutes until override. The vault is located behind sub-level three. You'll need her retinal code."
Damien adjusted his cuff.
"I've got it."
Ava had given it to him the night before , a secret Miranda had left encrypted in her files. The final piece of the access chain. The one code Wolfe never thought she would give away.
And now Damien was about to unlock the vault that could bring his entire empire down.
---
At the Summit
Ava rose before the final panel concluded.
A murmur spread through the crowd. Cameras flashed as she walked down the aisle, past startled guests and flustered organizers, and stepped up to the empty podium.
Her voice cut through the room like glass.
> "I wasn't invited here. I didn't need to be."
> "My name is Ava Sinclair. And I've stayed quiet long enough."
Gasps. A ripple of tension. Security moved toward the stage but stopped at a single glance from the summit director. Ava's presence was no longer a scandal.
It was news.
> "My father built Sinclair Pharmaceuticals to save lives. But someone twisted that legacy. Falsified trials. Silenced doctors. Turned my family's work into a weapon for profit.
> "I know who did it. And I have proof."
A sea of flashing cameras. A sudden silence so deep, it was deafening.
> "Dominic Wolfe."
The name rang like a gunshot.
And in the back row , behind tinted lenses and a measured smirk , the man himself stood.
Dominic Wolfe.
His applause was slow. Cold. Calculated.
> "Well played, Miss Sinclair."
---
The Face of the Enemy
He met her at the base of the stage, flanked by two guards, his voice dipped in amusement.
"You've grown teeth," he said softly.
"I've grown tired."
"You're making a mistake."
"No," Ava replied, stepping closer. "That was trusting you in the first place."
Wolfe's smile faded.
"You don't have what you think you do."
"But I do." She leaned in. "And while you were busy watching me, Damien was watching you."
For the first time, his eyes flickered.
"Blackwood…"
---
At Wolven Tower
The vault hissed open.
Inside , rows of physical ledgers, old contracts, untraceable wire transfers, and the original files that linked Wolfe's shell companies to falsified medical trials. Damien moved fast, snapping pictures, uploading data into a portable drive.
Lucien's voice buzzed.
"Ava just called him out. He's moving."
"No time to exit clean," Damien muttered. "I'll burn the trail."
He struck a match.
Set the backup files ablaze.
And walked out with the fire behind him , the tower screaming with alarms.
Wolfe's empire was burning from both ends.
---
Back at the Summit
Wolfe's guards reached for Ava but didn't touch her.
Because suddenly, screens lit up across the summit hall.
One by one, files began to appear — projected live from a dummy server Lucien had pre-programmed. Email chains. Medical logs. Death records. Wolfe's name plastered across every transaction.
The crowd erupted in gasps and shouts.
News crews began livestreaming.
And Wolfe?
He turned slowly toward the exit.
But Damien was already there.
---
The Confrontation
He stepped into Wolfe's path like a shadow cut from vengeance.
"Going somewhere?" Damien asked.
Wolfe didn't flinch. "You've made a mistake."
Damien's voice was low. "You tried to bury me once. Tried to use Ava to do it again."
"She's a liability."
"She's mine."
And then Damien punched him.
A full, brutal blow that knocked Wolfe to the floor. The cameras caught it. The media devoured it. And the guards hesitated because Wolfe no longer held power here.
The world was watching.
---
Aftermath
By nightfall, the internet had exploded. Hashtags trended worldwide:
#l#SinclairRedemption
#WolfeExposed
#BlackwoodStrikesBack
Wolfe was detained by Swiss authorities. The summit was shut down. And Ava stood on the rooftop of the hotel, wind lifting her hair as she watched the lights shimmer over the lake.
Damien joined her in silence.
"You really punched him," she said softly.
"Felt good."
A pause.
Then he asked the question that had waited far too long.
"What happens now?"
Ava turned to him.
"I rebuild my father's company. Clear his name. Finish what he started."
"And us?"
She looked at him.
"You tell me, Damien. Is this still just a contract?"
He didn't answer with words.
He dropped to one knee.
A ring gleamed in his hand.
No cameras.
No contracts.
Just him.
And her.