Behind Closed Doors

The remaining twenty-five minutes of Julian Cross’s introductory address were an agonizing blur of corporate terror and psychological torment for Elena. He spoke with the clinical, merciless precision of a surgeon dissecting a patient. He broke down the conglomerate’s quarterly underperformance, identified three redundant subsidiaries he intended to liquidate by the end of the month, and announced a complete restructuring of the digital media division. Every word sent ripples of…