Chapter 10 - Phoenix Rising
Six months later.
The Sterling Industries building had been seized, liquidated, and sold at auction. The buyer was a newly formed conglomerate: The Vanguard Veterans Trust, an organization dedicated to providing top-tier medical care, housing, and legal support to wounded soldiers.
The CEO of the Trust was me.
I walked into the newly renovated grand hall of the headquarters. Gone were the portraits of my corrupt ancestors. In their place were plaques honoring the men and women who had given everything for their country.
I wore a sleeveless dress. I didn't hide my scars anymore. They were my armor, my medals of honor, and the proof that I had walked through the fire and survived.
As I stepped up to the podium to announce the opening of a new prosthetic research wing, the room erupted into thunderous applause. I looked out into the crowd and saw the faces of the soldiers I had saved, standing tall, smiling back at me.
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My bloodline had cast me out to protect their greed. They had tried to erase me.
But fire doesn't destroy gold. It only refines it. I had burned their dynasty to the ground, and from its ashes, I had built a fortress. And this time, it was built to last.
