Liana’s POV

They say boardrooms are sterile and cold but this one feels like a battlefield. The long glass table gleams like a mirror, reflecting faces that used to nod when I spoke, used to smile when I entered the room. Now, they look at me like I’m a liability.

A storm is gathering behind every polite expression. I can feel it in the air and the hum of restraint, the sharpened edges of words not yet spoken.

“Let’s bring this meeting to order,” says Clara Lin, our interim chair. ...