Page 16

5

PHOENIX

As I walk down the hallway at work, I find Sophia, the firm’s new intern, lingering near my doorway. She smiles as our eyes catch. “Good morning, Phoenix.”

I haven’t had enough coffee for that kind of cheerfulness, but I force a smile anyways. “Morning.”

I head into my office, hanging my bag on the coat rack near the door. Sophia follows behind, her smile fading into something of a grimace.

“Cassandra told me to get you as soon as you walked in,” she admits, and now my expression matches hers. “She wants you come to Mr. Rhodes’s office right away. She stressed immediately, like, three times.”

“Really,” I say, the headache that never really went away surging to life with a vicious throb.

Sophia gives me an apologetic look, rolling her eyes as she turns away. “If you want to pretend that I was never here, I’ll tell her that I told someone else and they forgot to tell you.”

It’s a sweet offer that could end with Cassandra trying to fire her for incompetence, so I just shake my head. “Thanks for passing the message along, Sophia. I’ll head that way in a second.”

Once she’s gone, I pull in a deep breath, searching for a calm that is impossible to find. Finally, I make my way to Mr. Rhodes’s office. His assistant isn’t at her desk, so I knock lightly, waiting for him to call out.

Cassandra is perched on the end of his desk, staring at me with an emotion that makes me uncomfortable: triumph.

“Good morning, you wanted to see me?” I ask, standing in the entranceway to his office.

“Please, close the door and sit down.” Mr. Rhodes gestures to the sleek navy blue chairs in front of his desk.

I move to the seat across from him, the one farthest away from Cassandra. From my vantage point, I spot the Rising Star annual award that will be given out soon. It may be a hunk of glass to some, but to me it represents all that I have been working toward. Stability, success, and earned recognition.

“There has been a bit of a … situation that has arisen,” Mr. Rhodes starts and clears his throat. “I’m going to walk you through what we know so far.”

I brace myself, unsure where this is going, but nod at him to start.

“Over the past few months, there have been irregular financial movements tied to a series of holding accounts—entities that, on paper, appear disconnected, but ultimately trace back to Yarrow Holdings.”

I feel my pulse beat harder as he continues.

“As you’re aware, Yarrow has been under increasing scrutiny for potentially unethical financial practices—specifically around asset shielding and fund transfers.”

“Which we, as a firm, cannot be associated with. Not even on the periphery,” Cassandra chimes in.

Mr. Rhodes nods at her before looking back at me. “During internal review, your client’s name surfaced on one of those accounts.”

Cassandra and Mr. Rhodes stare at me, waiting for me to answer, but I don’t.

“The Yarrow Holdings account,” Cassandra says.

My stomach drops. How do they even know about this?

“That doesn’t mean Lena‘s involved—” I inform them before Cassandra interrupts.

“It means she’s connected,” she adds.

Mr. Rhodes holds up his hand to Cassandra’s venom. “The concern is not simply the connection. It’s the awareness of the account.”

I go perfectly still, not understanding where they are going with this line of questioning.

“There is an indication that this was brought to your attention prior to today.”

Only two nights ago, I think but push on with my side. “Yes, Lena called me. She didn’t even understand what she was looking at⁠—”