He removed his wife from the guest list for being “too simple”… He didn’t know she was the secret owner of his empire.

Now owned the air he was breathing.

Julian stopped walking.

His grip tightened on Isabella’s arm.

“That’s…” Isabella whispered.

“Yes,” Julian said.

But his voice lacked certainty.

Because this didn’t make sense.

It couldn’t.

Elara didn’t belong here.

Not like this.

Not as that.

The announcer’s voice cut through the silence again:

“Chairwoman Elara Voss, founder and principal investor of Aurora Group.”

The name hit like a gunshot.

Voss.

Not Thorn.

Never Thorn.

Julian’s world tilted.

Because he knew that name.

Everyone did.

Aurora Group was the invisible force behind half the companies in that room.

Including his.

He stepped forward.

Forcing a smile.

Trying to recover.

“Elara—” he began.

She didn’t look at him.

Didn’t even slow down.

She walked past him.

As if he were a stranger.

As if he were irrelevant.

The cameras turned.

The crowd shifted.

Power had entered the room.

And it wasn’t him.