Only Elena knew the fire raging beneath that polished exterior.
Once seated, she ordered a sparkling water with lime and opened her tablet again, this time pulling up the Next Technologies file. The company had developed a proprietary algorithm for predictive consumer behavior that would pair perfectly with Sharp's marketing infrastructure. Together, they could revolutionize targeted advertising—a space where Meridian had been lagging despite substantial investment.
Her phone buzzed again. Parker.
Meeting ended. VS and Mitchell left together. Heading to lunch off-site, just the two of them. Unusual behavior based on our surveillance patterns.
Elena raised an eyebrow. Victoria Sharp was not known for social lunches with her staff. The woman ate at her desk more often than not, or in carefully orchestrated power meals with clients and partners. A private lunch with her assistant suggested an intimacy that didn't align with Victoria's rigid professional boundaries.
Interesting.
Elena typed: Follow them. Discreetly. I want photos.
The waiter arrived with her water and took her lunch order. As he left, Elena's phone rang—a number she recognized as belonging to Matthias Chen, CEO of Next Technologies. She allowed herself a small smile before answering.
"Matthias," she said warmly. "What a pleasant surprise."
"Elena." His voice was strained. "I assume you've heard the news."
"News travels fast in our world."
"I wanted to call you personally. We seriously considered Meridian's offer—"
"But ultimately decided to go in another direction," Elena finished for him, her tone light despite the sharp edge of anger she felt. "Business is business, Matthias. No need to explain."
There was a pause on the line. "That's... generous of you. Many in your position would take it personally."
Elena ran a finger around the rim of her water glass. "May I ask what drew you to Victoria's company? For my own edification, of course. Especially since we spent six months crafting our proposal while she never even approached you."
Another pause, longer this time. "I approached her at the TechVision conference last month. Sometimes you just know when something feels right. Sharp Innovations has the culture and agility we were looking for. The personal touch, you might say."
The personal touch. How very like Victoria to attract opportunities without even trying. Elena had seen her do it before—positioning herself as the scrappy underdog fighting against entrenched privilege, conveniently ignoring her prestigious education and the connections that had helped her secure her initial funding.
"I understand completely," Elena said smoothly. "Though I'm disappointed, of course. I believe our companies could have done remarkable things together."
"Perhaps another opportunity will arise in the future," Matthias offered, clearly relieved by her gracious response.
"Perhaps," Elena agreed. "Best of luck with the merger."
She ended the call just as her lunch arrived, a perfectly prepared salmon dish that she now had no appetite for. Instead, she took a long sip of water and opened her email, quickly composing a message to her head of research and development.
Effective immediately, I want all resources directed toward developing our own predictive consumer algorithm. Reverse-engineer Next's technology if necessary. Whatever it takes, I want a competing product ready for market within six months.
Then she opened a second email to her head of operations.
Compile a list of Sharp's major clients with contracts up for renewal in the next quarter. I want detailed strategy proposals for poaching each one, no matter the cost.
Her phone buzzed again. A photo from Parker this time, taken through the window of an upscale bistro several blocks from the Next offices. Victoria and James Mitchell were seated at a corner table, heads bent close together over what appeared to be documents, but their body language suggested an intimacy beyond professional collaboration. Victoria was smiling—actually smiling—at something James had said, a genuine expression rarely seen in public.
Elena studied the image, zooming in on Victoria's face. She knew every variation of Victoria's smiles—the polite one for clients, the tight one for board meetings, the rehearsed one for press photos. This was different. This was the smile Victoria used to reserve for quiet moments between friends, for the late-night conversations when they'd solved all the world's problems with the confident naivety of exceptional young women who believed nothing could stand in their way.
A third email, this one to her private detective agency.
Priority assignment: James Mitchell. I want everything. Education, family, financials, ambitions, weaknesses. Surveillance level 1, effective immediately. And prepare a dossier on what it would take to recruit someone of his caliber.
Elena finally picked up her fork and began eating, her appetite returning as a plan formed in her mind. Victoria had taken something from her; it was only fair that she return the favor.
The merger with Next was a setback, but Elena had navigated worse obstacles. If Victoria wanted a war, Elena would give her one—meticulous, calculated, and devastating. She would dismantle Sharp Innovations piece by piece, starting with the very things Victoria valued most.
Her phone rang again. Elena checked the screen—her father, calling from the Meridian headquarters in Madrid. She silenced it and returned to her meal. Guillermo Vasquez had built Meridian from nothing, transforming a small software company into a technological empire through sheer determination and strategic brilliance. He had taught Elena everything she knew about business, about power, about never showing weakness.
He would not approve of this personal vendetta. Would tell her to focus on Meridian's growth rather than Sharp's downfall. Would remind her that true leaders create rather than destroy.
But Elena was beyond such restraint now. Victoria had crossed a line, and there was no going back.
As she finished her lunch, Elena's tablet chimed with an incoming message—the preliminary background report on James Mitchell the agency already had on file. She scanned it quickly, noting his impressive academic credentials, his spotless employment history, and his complete lack of personal entanglements. No spouse, no serious relationships on record, minimal social media presence. His entire life seemed to revolve around his work at Sharp Innovations.
Around Victoria.
Elena smiled, a cold, calculating expression that had made boardroom adversaries flinch. She had found Victoria's weakness—not in some corporate strategy or financial vulnerability, but in the one person who had somehow breached her carefully constructed walls.
"Perfect," she murmured, gathering her things and signaling for the check. The path forward was clear now. Victoria had always prioritized her independence, her control, her self-sufficiency. Elena would target precisely those qualities, forcing Victoria to recognize just how dependent she had become on others—on James Mitchell specifically—before systematically removing those supports.
By the time she finished, Victoria would understand exactly what it felt like to have something precious ripped away. To watch helplessly as years of work crumbled. To stand alone in the wreckage of dreams once shared.
As Elena stepped back into her waiting car, she felt a surge of cold satisfaction. Victoria Sharp had made a critical error in judgment six years ago when she'd walked away from Elena's friendship and the opportunities it offered. Now, she would finally understand the cost of that mistake.
"Take me back to the office," she instructed her driver. "I have work to do."
Elena breathed in comfort, satisfied with her plans, leaned back against the leather seat and watched the city pass by outside her window. Somewhere in those steel and glass towers, Victoria was planning her future with Next Technologies, blissfully unaware of the storm gathering on the horizon.
Not for long, Elena promised herself. Not for long at all.