Chapter One:Tokyo
The conference room had been silent for six minutes.
Sienna knew because she'd been counting. Six minutes since Dominic Ren had asked Victor Huang to explain the discrepancy in the Shanghai accounts. Six minutes since Victor had started sweating through his expensive shirt.
Dominic sat at the head of the table, leaning back in his chair, one hand resting on the armrest. He hadn't moved. Hadn't blinked. Just watched Victor fumble through explanations that grew weaker with every word.
"—and the vendor payments were delayed because of the holiday schedule, and my team miscalculated the exchange rate, but we've already corrected—"
"Victor."
The room went colder.
"Who approved the correction?"
Victor's mouth opened. Closed. His eyes darted to the woman beside him—his assistant, a young thing who looked ready to vomit.
"I did. I approved it."
"Without running it through Finance."
"I didn't think—"
"No. You didn't."
Dominic stood. Walked to the window. Fifteen people sat frozen around the table, afraid to breathe too loud.
"You've been with this company for eight years, Victor. Regional Director for three. Your wife just had a baby—your third, yes? Congratulations."
Victor's face went gray.
"I promoted you because you were careful. Thorough. You double-checked everything." Dominic turned back to face him. "When did that change?"
"Mr. Ren, I can explain—"
"You have ninety days to find the missing four hundred thousand. If it's not recovered by then, the amount comes out of your severance when I terminate you." He straightened his cuffs. "Meeting adjourned."
People scattered. Victor sat frozen, staring at the table, his assistant whispering something urgent in his ear.
Sienna gathered her tablet and fell into step beside Dominic as he walked toward his office. She matched his pace without thinking—five years had taught her his rhythm.
"You're not going to fire him," she said once they were out of earshot.
"I might."
"He's been skimming from the vendor accounts for at least a year. You've known for six months."
Dominic glanced at her. "Have I?"
"You had me pull his expense reports in March. Asked me to flag anything unusual." She opened the door to his office, stepped aside to let him pass. "You were building a file."
He sat behind his desk. The corner of his mouth twitched—not quite a smile, but close.
"And what do you think I should do with that file?"
"Depends on what you want." Sienna set her tablet on his desk, pulled up the relevant documents. "If you want him gone, you have enough to terminate with cause. No severance. Possible criminal charges if you push it."
"And if I don't want him gone?"
"Then you let him find the money. He'll drain his savings, borrow from family, do whatever it takes. And he'll owe you. For the rest of his career, he'll know you could have destroyed him and didn't."
Dominic leaned back. Studied her.
"Which would you choose?"
"I'd fire him. He stole from you. But I'm not you."
"No. You're not."
He turned to his computer, effectively dismissing her. Sienna picked up her tablet and headed for the door.
"Sienna."
She stopped.
"Cancel my dinner with the Liang group tonight. Tell them I'm sick. Something contagious—I don't want a reschedule until next month."
"Done."
"And order Thai for the office. The place on 53rd, not the one Marcus likes. That one gave me food poisoning."
"I remember."
She left.
---
Sienna's office was a glass box adjacent to Dominic's. Smaller, but private—a privilege she'd earned after her second year.
She spent the next hour rescheduling his week, fielding calls from people who wanted meetings he'd never take, and responding to emails he couldn't be bothered to read. Routine. Familiar. The kind of work that would bore most people but suited her fine.
Her phone buzzed. Personal line.
Yoona:emergency. call me when u can.
Sienna glanced at Dominic's office. He was on a call, pacing by the window, gesturing at someone who couldn't see him.
She stepped out into the hallway and dialed.
"Finally." Yoona's voice was tight. "I've been texting for an hour."
"I was in a meeting. What's wrong?"
"It's Jae. He got arrested."
Sienna closed her eyes. Jae was Yoona's younger brother—twenty-two, chronic bad decisions, the kind of kid who thought consequences were for other people.
"For what?"
"Some bar fight. I don't know the details. He called from the station, said he needs bail money, and I don't have—" Yoona's voice cracked. "I don't have it, Sienna. I just paid rent and my account is empty."
"How much?"
"Five thousand."
Sienna did the math. She had it. Barely. Her savings account would take a hit, but she could cover it.
"I'll transfer it now. Send me the station address."
"I'll pay you back. I swear, I'll—"
"I know. Just go get him."
She hung up. Transferred the money. Stared at her phone for a long moment.
Yoona had been her best friend since college. Fourteen years of late-night calls, borrowed clothes, shared heartbreaks. She'd do it again without thinking.
But five thousand was five thousand. And Jae would probably end up back in a cell within six months.
Her phone buzzed again. Dominic's office line.
"Where's the Thai food?"
"Ordering now."
"I want extra basil rolls."
"I know."
She hung up, placed the order, and went back to her desk.
---
The rest of the day blurred into routine.
At seven, most of the floor had emptied out. Sienna remained, reviewing contracts for a deal closing next week. Dominic was still in his office, still on calls, still going.
At eight, she knocked on his door.
"Kitchen's closing soon. Do you want anything else before they leave?"
He didn't look up from his laptop. "No."
She waited. He was doing that thing—reading something that bothered him, jaw tight, scrolling too fast.
"What is it?"
"Nothing you need to worry about."
"If it was nothing, you wouldn't be grinding your teeth."
Now he looked up. That flat stare that made executives twice his age stammer. Sienna didn't blink.
"The Nakamura deal," he said finally. "Their CFO is stalling. Wants to renegotiate terms we already agreed on."
"Which terms?"
"The equity split. He thinks I won't walk away." Dominic closed his laptop. "He's wrong."
"What do you need from me?"
"Book a flight to Tokyo. Tomorrow. We'll be there for three days, possibly longer." He stood, grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair. "And cancel everything on my calendar until Friday."
"I'll have the itinerary ready by morning."
He walked past her toward the door, then paused.
"The Thai food was good. Better than last time."
"Different restaurant."
"I noticed."
He left. Sienna stood in his empty office for a moment, then turned off the lights and went back to her desk.
Tokyo tomorrow. Three days with Nakamura's people, negotiating terms that should have been settled weeks ago. She'd need to pack, brief the team here, make sure nothing fell apart while they were gone.
Her phone buzzed. Yoona.
Yoona:got him. he's fine. thank you. i owe you everything.
Sienna typed back:buy me dinner when i get back from tokyo.
Yoona:tokyo??? girl we need to TALK
She smiled, pocketed her phone, and started making lists.