Blackwood Penthouse - Friday Night - 11:58 PM
Emily stood by the window long after reading Alexander's message, her mind processing the magnitude of what her cousin had done.
Timothy had called an emergency meeting. Within twenty minutes, Sebastian, Jack, and Ming Li were gathered in the living room, all reading Alexander's encrypted message on the secure tablet.
"Your cousin has ice in his veins," Jack said with genuine admiration. "Multi-layered poisoning, perfect cover story, complete evidence destruction. That's professional-level tradecraft."
"He was desperate," Emily said quietly. "Victoria was going to destroy everything. He had no choice."
"He had choices," Sebastian corrected. "He could have run. Could have warned you and hoped for the best. Could have tried to negotiate with Victoria. Instead, he chose the most effective solution....permanent neutralization of the threat. That takes serious commitment."
