“Rose! You need to see this!” Markus’s voice rang out in panic from the front room of the boutique. Rosemary, hunched over her desk, lifted her head in alarm.

“What is it now, Markus?” she asked wearily.

Markus rushed in, clutching a stack of papers, and threw them onto her desk. “Our main investor — Taro Group — officially withdrew their entire capital today. They even sent a formal notice through their attorney!”

Rosemary stared at the documents, frozen, before picking up the top letter. “We hereby terminate our partnership due to reputational and public trust considerations…” Her voice wavered as she read. “They don’t even mention a clear reason.”...