The next day, as expected, the news of Joshua''s killing hit the headlines. Ste was already a public figure, and any news rted to her generated massive discussion. Her dramatic family history and meteoric rise from a violin prodigy who reached the pinnacle of her craft to a business magnate who conquered the corporate world-made her a subject of envy, jealousy, and loathing in equal


    measure.


    Now that they had caught her in a misstep, her detractors were out in full force, eager to tear her down.


    Ste received calls from both Haynes and Neville Connolly, each offering to help manage the crisis.


    "No, thank you," she told them both. "I have a n for this."


    Trusting her judgment, neither man pressed the issue. Ste let the negative


    press fester, limiting her public appearances. Worried that Joshua might be struggling with the pressure of the online attacks, she reassured him, "Don''t worry about any of this. I''ll take care of it."


    Joshua offered a faint smile. "I know. You''ll protect me."


    Just then, a knock came at her office door. Aicken peeked in. "Ms. Cameron, you have a visitor. Should I send them in?"


    Ste sighed, assuming it was another shareholdering to persuade her to fire Joshua. While some were acting out of malice, she knew a few genuinely had her best interests at heart. As she would need their support when she officially joined The Williams Group, she couldn''t afford to alienate them.


    "Please, show them in."


    To her surprise, it wasn''t a shareholder who entered, but Foreman Richards.


    She stood up. "Foreman, what are you doing here?"


    He looked weary from travel. "I heard you were in trouble, so I came to see if I could help." His gaze shifted to Joshua, who stood behind her. "Star, can we talk? Alone?"


    "Of course." Ste turned to Joshua. "Joshua, you can go take care of other things for now."


    Joshua gave Foreman a brief, assessing look before leaving the office.


    Once they were alone, Foreman asked with concern, "Star, what''s going on? Why would Joshua kill someone?"


    Ste recounted her ordeal in<fn9221> ?? ??? ???? ?? ???? ???? ???????s, ????s? ??s?? Find[?]ovel</fn9221>


    Germany. As he listened, Foreman thought to himself: *That bastard


    Stuart deserved it. If it were me, wouldn''t have let him live either* But killing him in front of so many witnesses? That was just foolish.  s


    Outwardly, however, he feigned shock. "That doesn''t sound like Joshua at all. He''s not an impulsive or bloodthirsty person. To shoot someone dead in public like that... it''spletely out of character. Did he have some personal grudge against Stuart? Or was there something else going on?"  s


    Ste''s expression flickered. She couldn''t tell Foreman about Joshua''s condition.


    "It''splicated. You can''t me Joshua entirely for what happened."


    Seeing that she wasn''t going to borate, a flicker of coldness passed through Foreman''s eyes. Even after Joshua had killed a m?n right infront of her she didn''t seem to find him monstrous. Instead, she was determined to protect him. Cóntent belongs to s


    This Joshua had to go. He couldn''t be allowed to stay by her side.


    "Star, how do you n to handle this?" Foreman asked. "The rumors are doing a lot of damage to your reputation. If this isn''t managed properly, it could seriously impact your career."


    "Don''t worry, Foreman," Ste replied calmly. "I''ve already figured out the best way to resolve this."