Part 20: The View from the Sovereign Tower
## Part 20: The View from the Sovereign Tower
The wind off the Atlantic was cold, carrying the clean, crisp smell of the northern snow that was heading toward the Manhattan channel.
I stood on the wraparound balcony of the fifty-fourth floor, my hand resting flat against the cold stone railing, watching the golden afternoon sun sink behind the skyline of the city.
The harbor below was alive with moving ships, their containers shuffling in a perfect, silent matrix under the guidance of our new electric logistics software.
The cranes were moving.
The tugboats were clearing the channels.
The entire East Coast supply chain was operating under a single, unified name: Collins Maritime.
Lily was asleep in my arms, her small head heavy against my shoulder, her breath smelling of warm milk and new life against my neck.
Marcus stood near the glass doors behind me, his tactical jacket open to the wind, his eyes scanning the horizon for the first lights of the evening shifts.
"The Rotterdam fleet has just cleared the outer gate, Madam Chairwoman," he reported softly.
"The manifests are verified."
"The cargo is secured."
I looked down at my daughter’s face, her tiny green eyes opening for a brief second to catch the gold light of the sunset before she curled her fist back into the wool of my sweater.
For four years, the Vance family had treated me like a poor, pregnant burden—a quiet girl they could humiliate and discard once they had used her life to buy their comfort.
They thought power was a presentation you could maintain with enough stolen credit lines and arrogant dinners.
But they had completely forgotten that you don't build an empire by letting your targets hold the books.
I smiled, a genuine, beautiful smile spreading across my face as the shadows of the glass towers lengthened over the clean blue water of the harbor.
The past was completely destroyed.
The borders were perfectly safe.
The ledger was balanced to the final penny.
I wasn't a burden.
I was the Queen of an empire.
And my daughter and I were going to rule it perfectly.
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The road ahead was completely clear.
And the view from the top was absolutely beautiful.
