The signing of the two-hundred-million-dollar equity partnership took place at 10:00 AM in a private boardroom at the Grand Lisboa.
The room was all polished mahogany and quiet money. Floor-to-ceiling windows looked out over the Macau skyline. The morning light cut across the table and made the gold pens gleam. The air smelled like expensive cologne, paper, and coffee no one was drinking.
I sat at the head of the long table, wearing a bespoke navy suit. The jacket was tailored to hide the bruising on my ribs from the elevator shaft. My legal team sat to my left. Three high-priced corporate lawyers Nia had hired on retainer from a prestigious Hong Kong firm. They had their laptops open and their faces neutral.
Across from me, Empress Song Mei sat alone.
She wore a tailored black silk suit. No jewelry except a thin gold watch. Her hair was pulled back. Her expression was a mask of serene, untouchable authority.
