The lock clicked. Sonia stood alone in the hallway with the suitcase handle in her hand, the paper letter still burning in her chest like a hot nail. For one long minute, she did not move. Then she pulled out her phone and called her sister. Cynthia, can I come? Cynthia arrived in 10 minutes, hair in a scarf, slippers on, she hugged Sonia, tucked her into the car, and drove to Leki through the quiet streets.

In the living room at home, Sonia told her everything, every word, every look, every silence. Cynthia’s jaw tightened. He said, “You’re not in his class again. This same David we fed when he had nothing.” H Sonia gave a small broken laugh. Sometimes God opens the ground to show people what they have buried. As she spoke, her phone buzzed.

A new message, she lifted it. Read it. The corner of her mouth lifted the way. A sunrise lifts a city soft and sure. Who is it? Cynthia asked. Sonia turned the screen so her sister could see. The message was from an unknown number, but the tone was not unknown at all. It was proud, loud, cruel. Hello, bad luck.

This is an invitation to you to attend my official resumption as the new manager of the famous Northside Holdings tomorrow to witness what it means to have good luck in life. Who knows that gate man may see you and have interest in you? Cynthia gasped. He sent you this after what he did? Sonia nodded. The smile didn’t reach her eyes, but it stood without shaking. Will you go? Cynthia asked.

Yes, Sonia said. Cynthia blinked. To watch him? To let him mock you? Sonia folded the phone and held it in both hands like a small book. To watch him, yes, but not to be mocked. Cynthia frowned. Sonia, talk to me. What is happening? Sonia took a long breath and let it out slowly. 10 years of waiting sat in that breath.

10 years of lawyers and letters. 10 years of family fights that moved like storms. Loud, wild, then quiet again. Two days before a court had read her late father’s will one final time. The judge had spoken. The old arguments died. Northside Holdings, the company her father built stone by stone, was in Sonia’s share.

By name, by law, by blood, she had signed the final paper with a calm hand and thought of her father’s eyes. She was the owner now, and wanting to heal her home, she had used her first quiet act of power to approve the best name for manager. The HR team had recommended one man with strong results, bold ideas, and a hunger to prove himself. David, she did not tell him. She wanted him to feel the joy of a gift that came without begging.

She wanted him to feel safe. He had chosen to stand on a knife instead. Sonia looked at Cynthia and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I’ll go,” she said again, steady. “And I will walk in with my head high.” Cynthia nodded slowly. Then I’m going with you. Morning painted the sky over Victoria Island. Northid’s compound bloomed with people and color.

A red carpet cut through the gray interlocking tiles. Strings of balloons swayed in the light breeze. A live band tested their drums. Staff wore bright smiles and neat badges. David arrived first in a navy blue suit, tight tight, shoes cold and shiny. He shook hands like a king and posed for photos like a billboard. He kept looking at the gate.

He wanted the moment they had planned. Sonia at the edge of his light, standing where the guards stood, watching him rise without her. He lifted the microphone and began to speak. But the gate caught his eye and held it because it was opening.

Because a black Bentley was gliding in like a secret finally told because two security guards were walking beside it like pages to a queen. The MC, who had been waiting for a signal only a few people knew, put a hand to his earpiece, then lifted the mic high. “Ladies and gentlemen,” he called, voice strong. “Please stand and welcome the new CEO of Northside Holdings, Mrs. Sonia Adile.” The sound inside David’s head turned to snow.

Sonia stepped out of the car. She moved down the red carpet. Staff bowed. Phones shook. David’s throat dried like paper. How? How can she be the CEO? he heard himself say, and the words hung in the air like a bell you couldn’t unring. Sonia walked up the steps and stopped beside him. She faced the crowd, then turned to him. Up close, her eyes were calm.

But there was a storm far behind them, one he could not reach. The MC offered her the microphone. Sonia took it. She leaned in a little, lips close to the silver head of the mic. The whole compound waiting to hear her first words as the woman he had thrown away and the boss he would now have to face.