Rose lifted her champagne flute, the bubbles catching the afternoon sunlight that streamed through the penthouse windows. Across the table, Herod mirrored her movement, his eyes glinting with satisfaction. C "To bringing down giants," Herod said.


    They clinked sses. Rose savored the expensive champagne, allowing herself this moment of triumph.


    "I must admit," Herod said, settling back in his chair, "your media contacts exceeded my expectations. The coverage is... spectacr."


    Rose smiled, running her finger along the rim of her ss. "Money talks. But so do old favors." She nodded Toward the television where her tearful interview was reying. "Eliza Jenkins has hated Victoria Kan "And the medical records? A particrly inspired touch."


    "There are no medical records," Roseughed, the sound sharp with triumph. "Just enough specific details to sound convincing, provided by a therapist who never treated Camille but is happy to consult anonyn the right price."


    Herod raised an eyebrow. "Creative."


    "It''s how the game is yed." Rose stood and walked to the window, looking out over Manhattan with fresh eyes. For weeks, the city had felt like a prison, ces she couldn''t go, people who wouldn''t speak to h people want to believe it."


    "Especially when ites from the tearful sister." Herod joined


    her at the window, champagne in hand. "Your performance was quite moving.


    "I learned from the best actors in the business, the ultra-


    rich." Rose''s voice hardened. "Watching my so-


    called family pretend to be perfect while judging me for every mistake."


    On the coffee table, Herod''s phone buzzed. He nced at it, his smile widening


    "Kane Industries has called an emergency board meeting, he said, raising his ss again. "Your sister is in full crisis mode."


    Rose closed her eyes briefly, picturing Camille''s face as she woke to find herself braided unstable and dangerous. The thought sent warmth through her chest.


    "They''ve pulled her from the Phoenix Gridunch event," Herod continued, reading from his phone. "iming she''s ''focusing on technical aspects rather than public- facing duties.""


    "They''re hiding her," Rose said, satisfaction flooding her voice. "Exactly what I wanted. ''The mighty Camille Kane, driven back into the shadows."


    Herod poured more champagne for them both. "Phase one aplished. But remember, this is just the beginning."


    "The beginning of the end for Camille." Rose took the refilled ss. "Tomorrow my parents give their interview. My poor, concerned parents, heartbroken over their daughter''s mental decline." "They agreed to participate?"


    "They don''t know they''re participating yet," Rose said with a harshugh. "But they will. My father will do anything to protect the family name. Including disowning his ''unstable'' daughter If he thinks it will limit the "Ruthless." Herod studied her with new appreciation. "You''ve thought of everything."


    "Not everything." Rose''s eyes darkened. “Victoria Kane is still standing. That woman has weathered worse storms than this."


    "Which is why phase two targets the Phoenix Grid itself." Herod gestured toward his desk where blueprints and technical documents were spread out. "My sources inside their engineering department provide w "Exin it again." Rose said, moving toward the desk. "How exactly do we sabotage a clean energy project without getting caught?"


    Herod joined her,ying his hand on a schematic. "We


    don''t have to sabotage anything physically. We just need to prove it was built on wed assumptions."


    "And how do we do that?"


    By revealing that Hannah Zhao, their chief engineer, falsified her initial test results." Herod tapped a document. "The system works in controlled settings but fails under the load conditions of a full city grid. Zhao knew this six months ago but buried the findings to keep her job."


    "And you have proof of this?"


    "I will by next week." Herod''s smile didn''t reach his eyes. "My contact is gathering the final pieces. When they release the evidence, Kane Industries will face more than bad publicity. They''ll be looking at fraud c investigations."


    "And Camille takes the fall," Rose whispered, the image so sweet she could almost taste it. "The unstable heiress who pushed forward a dangerous project despite warnings


    She moved to


    the television, turning up the volume just as a financial analyst appeared on screen.


    "Investors are rightfully concerned," the woman was saying "Kane Industries has positioned the Phoenix Grid as the cornerstone of their future growth strategy. If the leadership of that project ispromised, a "Listen to them," Rose said, gesturing at the screen. "They''ve already connected Camille''s supposed Instability to doubts about the project. We barely had to nudge them in that direction."


    "People see what they expect to see," Herod agreed. "Create the right framework, and they fill in the nks themselves."


    Rose stared at the screen as it cut to footage of Victoria Kane entering Kane Industries headquarters, surrounded by security and ignoring shouted questions from reporters. The older woman''s face was a stone "I wish I could see inside that building right now," Rose murmured. "Victoria realizing her perfect revenge n is unraveling. Camille hiding away as the world questions her sanity."


    Herod''s phone rang. He excused himself, moving toward his office while Rose remained transfixed by the images on television


    Now they showed Camille''s house, journalists crowded at the gates while security kept them back. The caption read: "Kane Heiress Remains Secluded as Mental Health Questions Mount." Rose felt a rush unlike anything


    she''d experienced before, not just satisfaction or triumph, but something deeper and more primal.


    Herod returned, his face alight with fresh news. "Alexander Pierce has been making calls to his investigative team. They''re trying to trace the source of the leaks."


    "Let them try," Rose said, unconcerned. "We''ve covered out tracks."


    "We have, but


    vignce is essential." Herod checked his watch. "The interview with your parents is scheduled for 9AM tomorrow. Have you made the necessary arrangements?"


    Rose nodded, her expression turning calcting. "My father received documents this morning detailing ''concerns


    about Camille''s mental state going back years. Along with reminder about what happened to thest family who publicly contradicted these reports."


    "A threat?"


    "A warning." Rose smiled thinly. "My father understands self-


    preservation. He''ll say exactly what the interviewer expects to hear."


    "And if he doesn''t?"


    "Then we release evidence of his offshore ounts. Rose shrugged. "He doesn''t know we know about those. But we do, thanks to your financial investigators."


    Herod whistled softly. "You really would destroy your own father."


    "He stopped being my father the moment he chose Camille


    at the Phoenix g." Rose''s voice turned to ice. Family is just another word for people who haven''t betrayed you yet."


    A notification chimed on Herod''sptop. He moved to check it, his expression shifting from curiosity to delight. "Kane Industries stock has triggered circuit breakers. Trading temporarily halted after falling twenty Rose closed her eyes, letting the news wash over her. Twenty percent. Billions of dors in value erased in a single day. Because of her.


    "Victoria must be beside herself," she said, reopening her eyes. "The great business titan, watching her empire crumble"


    "This is only the beginning of her pain," Herod reminded her. "When we reveal the Phoenix Grid ws next week, the real damage begins."


    Rose moved to the bar cart, pouring herself a measure of whiskey. The burn of alcohol down her throat matched the fire of vengeance in her chest.


    "I want to be there," she said suddenly. "When they realize the Phoenix Grid is wed. I want to see Camille''s face.


    Heród considered her request. "Risky. You''re too recognizable now."


    "I''ll find a way." Rose wasn''t asking permission. "I''ve spent too long watching from the sidelines."


    An assistant entered with news about tomorrow''s interview arrangements. After finalizing details, Rose turned back to Herod. "We should celebrate properly tonight. Dinner at Eleven Madison Park? I''m suddenl "Bold," Herodmented. "unting yourself while Camille hides away."


    "That''s the point." Rose drained her whiskey. "I''m not the one in disgrace anymore. I''m the victim, remember? The concerned sister who finally found the courage to speak her truth."


    As the afternoon sun began to fade, casting long shadows across the city, Rose returned to the window.


    Somewhere out there, Camille was hiding, wounded and cornered.


    The thought should have been enough. But Rose realized with mild surprise that it wasn''t.


    "What are you thinking about?" Herod asked, noticing her silence.


    Rose kept her eyes on the city below. "I''m thinking that when this


    is over, when we''ve taken everything from her... I want her to live."


    "Live?" Herod sounded surprised. "I would


    have thought you wanted her destroyedpletely."


    "Death is too quick." Rose turned, her expression chilling in its calmness. "I want her to live a long, empty life knowing she had everything and lost it. Just like I did." Herod studied her for a long moment. "You''re more dangerous than I initially assessed, Ms. Lewis,"


    "Thank you." Rose epted it as thepliment it was meant to be.


    As they prepared to leave, Rose paused by the television once more. The screen showed Alexander Pierce entering Camille''s home, his face grim and determined. "The white knight rushes to save the damsel," she murmured.


    "Does that concem you?" Herod asked, retrieving his jacket


    Rose shook her head, a slow smile spreading across her face "No. It''s perfect actually. When Camille falls, Alexander falls with her. Two enemies destroyed for the price of one.".


    She switched off the television, casting the room into sudden silence. The news would still be there tomorrow, with fresh headlines, new revtions, more damage to inflict "Ready?" Herod asked, holding open the door.


    Rose stepped into the hallway, head high, eyes bright with triumph. "I''ve been ready for this my entire life."


    Behind them, the penthouse fell quiet, the schematics for the Phoenix Gridid out on Herod''s desk like a blueprint not just for a clean energy project, but for theplete devastation of Camille Kane and every


    The first battle was won. The war continued tomorrow.