The helicopter doors slid open as soon as they touched the rooftop. A wave of cold night air swept into the cabin, carrying with it the sharp scent of concrete, steel and the faint hum of emergency generators. The rooftop was eerily quiet. No welcoming team. No security escorts. No personnel rushing forward to assist.
Just silence.
Too much silence.
Rita stepped out first, scanning the rooftop with narrowed eyes. Morgan followed, clutching a case of recovered fragments. John stepped out last, pulling the Benefactor out with him, still bound and unconscious. The moment John's shoes hit the rooftop, the city lights behind them flickered, as if something deep beneath the ground had shifted.
Rita felt a chill crawl up her spine. "John. This place feels wrong."
Morgan nodded quickly. "The Crest never leaves the roof empty. There should be at least six guards up here."
John scanned the far edges of the rooftop. Not a shadow moved. Not a single voice echoed. Only the mechanical hum of the helicopter behind them.
"They know I am alive," he said quietly. "But they are pretending they do not."
Rita exhaled through clenched teeth. "They are waiting for you to walk into whatever they prepared."
Morgan swallowed. "Boss, the Benefactor was telling the truth. They started planning the moment you entered the Sanctuary. They must think you died in the blast. This emptiness is not a mistake. Somebody wanted time to set their pieces."
John tightened his grip on the Benefactor. "Then let them play."
He started moving toward the rooftop entrance.
The door opened before he touched it.
A security officer stepped out slowly, his uniform pristine, his expression neutral. Two more guards flanked him, hands behind their backs as if waiting for orders.
The first guard bowed his head slightly.
"Good evening, sir. Welcome back."
Rita's eyebrows shot up. "Now they decide to show up."
John's voice remained flat. "Why is the rooftop unguarded."
The guard kept his gaze steady. "Orders from Director Cavanaugh."
Morgan nearly choked. "Cavanaugh. The same Cavanaugh who tried to undermine you last quarter."
The guard continued, unfazed. "He believed the rooftop should remain clear until your return was confirmed."
John's eyes narrowed. "He believed I was dead."
The guard did not answer. He simply stepped aside. "He is waiting for you in the Executive Atrium."
Rita moved closer to John. "Cavanaugh does not wait for anyone in the Atrium. That place is for announcements. Ceremonies. Power shifts."
John clenched his jaw. "He thinks he is taking control."
Morgan whispered urgently, "Boss, if Cavanaugh has aligned himself with the Benefactor's remnants, then this is a coup."
John dragged the unconscious Benefactor forward. "Then we expose it."
The guard watched silently as they entered the rooftop stairwell. The metal door closed behind them with a heavy echo that sounded too final.
As they descended the steps, Rita walked beside John. "This feels like a trap."
John kept walking. "Every path inside The Crest is a trap. This one is just better designed."
Morgan followed close behind. "We should not let Cavanaugh know we have the Benefactor."
John's voice hardened. "He will know soon enough."
They reached the Executive Atrium level. As the elevator doors opened, the sound hit them first.
Voices. Dozens of them. Echoing through the vast, high ceilinged hall.
When they stepped out, the scene unfolded like a staged performance.
Executives filled the room. Board members. Department heads. Senior directors. All gathered in a semicircle facing the central podium. Murmurs washed through the hall like ripples on dark water.
Cavanaugh stood at the podium, crisp suit, polished shoes, flawless posture. His expression radiated controlled authority. He looked like a man who had already rehearsed his victory.
And then the room fell silent.
Every head turned.
John Raymond stepped into the hall, covered in soot, clothes torn, face hardened by fire and war. Rita and Morgan flanked him, bruised, burned, and unbroken.
The unconscious Benefactor hung from John's grip like a conquered enemy.
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
Someone whispered, "That is him."
Someone else whispered, "He survived."
Cavanaugh froze for half a heartbeat, his confidence cracking before he forced a smile back into place.
"John," Cavanaugh said smoothly, projecting his voice. "We received reports of an explosion. We feared the worst."
John walked forward, eyes locked on him. "You feared I survived."
A ripple of unease spread across the executives.
Cavanaugh raised his hands slightly. "Now, that is unnecessary. We are all on the same side here."
John dropped the Benefactor at the foot of the podium. The man's body hit the floor with a heavy thud.
Every executive recoiled.
Cavanaugh's face drained of colour.
John's voice cut through the room. "Recognise him."
A deadly silence followed.
Someone whispered in trembling disbelief, "The Benefactor."
Another voice whispered, "He was real."
John stepped closer, gaze sharp as a blade. "He led a faction within this company. He manipulated our systems. He threatened this city. And while my team and I fought for our lives inside his Sanctuary, someone here tried to take my seat."
Cavanaugh struggled to keep his composure. "John, there must be a misunderstanding."
John's stare intensified. "I returned alive. And you prepared a ceremony."
Several executives shifted uncomfortably.
Cavanaugh forced a laugh. "This is protocol. We needed clarity. Leadership had to be established in case you were lost."
Morgan stepped forward, voice steady. "Director Cavanaugh initiated the succession process less than one hour after John entered the Sanctuary."
Rita added sharply, "He removed John's name from half the leadership boards before we even reached the city."
Gasps broke out.
Cavanaugh's eyes widened. "Lies. These are lies."
John took another step. "Then explain something."
Cavanaugh swallowed. "Explain what?"
John pointed to the massive Crest emblem behind the podium.
"Why does it look like it has already been replaced."
Cavanaugh's mouth opened, but no words came out.
The executives looked at him in horror.
Rita crossed her arms. "Someone planned to crown themselves tonight."
Morgan's voice shook with urgency. "And if John had died in the explosion, Cavanaugh would be standing there giving a very different speech."
Cavanaugh finally snapped. "Enough. This is slander. You cannot come in here with accusations and expect the board to accept them."
John stepped closer until he stood just a breath away from Cavanaugh.
"I dragged the man who tried to destroy my city into this hall. I walked through fire to get here. And you stood on a podium pretending to lead my company."
Cavanaugh's voice cracked. "This is not your company."
The room froze.
John's eyes darkened.
Rita whispered urgently, "John."
Morgan whispered, "Boss."
But John did not step back.
He leaned in, voice low and lethal.
"Then let me remind you. This company carries my father's name. His blood. His sacrifice. Everything inside these walls exists because he built it with his life. And you thought you could erase it in one night."
Cavanaugh trembled. "I did what had to be done."
John straightened slowly.
"Then I will do what must be done now."
The room went utterly silent.
John lifted his hand.
Security officers stepped forward instantly.
Cavanaugh's eyes widened. "John, wait. We can discuss this."
John's voice remained calm. "Escort Director Cavanaugh to internal containment. Effective immediately."
Two guards grabbed Cavanaugh by the arms.
He fought, struggling against them. "This is a mistake. You cannot do this. I have loyalists. You will start a war inside this building."
John looked him dead in the eyes. "The war already started."
Cavanaugh was dragged away, shouting until the doors swallowed his voice.
Every executive stared at John with a mix of fear and awe.
John turned to the room, his voice resonant and cold.
"We are done playing with shadows. We are done letting traitors climb these walls. We are done being hunted."
He pointed to the unconscious Benefactor.
"This is the man who tried to control us."
He placed his hand on the Crest emblem.
"And I am the man who ends every one of his followers."
The room remained silent.
No one dared breathe.
Rita stepped closer, her voice steady. "John, what now?"
John looked around the hall filled with power, corruption and trembling ambition.
"We rebuild the house."
He turned toward the darkened corridor.
"And then we burn its enemies."