The vote came an hour later, after Julian's lawyers argued procedure and precedent and the particular brand of outrage rich men reached for when the facts stopped cooperating with them.

Nine to three. Julian Vane's board reinstatement, permanently denied. Sterling Vane, confirmed as CEO with the board's full backing, and a formal referral of the notebook's contents to the district attorney's office, effective immediately.

Julian didn't storm out. That was the part that unsettled Ivy most, watching him gather his things with the same unhurried precision he'd used to button his coat in the diner, like losing was simply another variable he'd account for later.

"This isn't finished," he said...