At my husband’s company party, he struck my shoulder hard enough to send me stumbling toward a champagne table, then whispered, “Go home.

The ballroom seemed to lose all air in an instant.

Audrey stepped out from the shadows of the champagne table and began walking toward the stage, her blue silk dress whispering against the floor.

Julian turned to glare at her, his face twisting in anger.

“Audrey! What are you doing? Get back to the—”

He stopped.

Malcolm stepped down from the podium, walked to the edge of the stage, and extended his hand to help Audrey up the steps.

Beside Julian, Camilla’s grip on his arm loosened. Her eyes widened in absolute shock as she watched Audrey take the microphone from the Chairman.

“Thank you, Malcolm,” Audrey said into the mic. Her voice was calm, clear, and carried to every corner of the room.

A wave of intense whispering broke out among the two hundred employees.

“Is that Vance’s wife?”

“She owns Northstar?”

“Wait, Northstar bought out our mezzanine debt?”

Julian took a sharp step toward the stage, his face turning pale.

“Malcolm!” Julian called out, trying to keep his voice controlled. “What is this joke? Audrey doesn't own Northstar. That’s her family’s charity trust!”

Malcolm didn’t answer. He simply stepped back, leaving the stage to Audrey.

Audrey looked down from the platform. She met Julian’s frantic gaze, then shifted her eyes to Camilla, whose face had gone completely drain of color.

“I know many of you are surprised,” Audrey said smoothly into the microphone. “Julian certainly is.”

A few nervous chuckles rippled through the room.

“Becoming majority owner of Aurelia Systems is an honor,” Audrey continued. “My firm invested here because we believe in the eight hundred people who actually build our products. But before we talk about our future growth, there is a financial matter from the past that requires immediate resolution.”