Kian knew the moment he left the conference room that everything had changed.
This wasn't about surviving anymore.
It wasn't about playing the game and hoping he came out unscathed.
This was about power.
Real power.
The kind Mercer had offered him—the kind that came with no rules, no safety net, and no way back once he stepped too far forward.
And Kian?
He had already stepped forward.
The only question left was how much further he was willing to go.
---
The rest of the day passed in a blur of meetings and calculated conversations.
Kian's inbox was full of thinly veiled inquiries from executives testing the waters.
Where do you stand, Kian?
Are you with Mercer? Against him?
It was too soon to answer.
Too soon to show his hand.
So instead, Kian spent the day watching. Listening. Studying the way the company was shifting beneath his feet.