I never told my husband I owned a five-billion-dollar empire. To him, I was still “the useless housewife.” At his promotion party, he forced me to wear a maid’s uniform and serve drinks, while his mistress sat in the place of honor, wearing my jewelry. I kept my head down and served quietly—until his boss saw me and stopped cold.

Sterling didn’t look at the stage. He and his entourage walked straight through the crowd, parting the sea of guests. They were heading toward the back corner. Toward the shadows.

Mark frowned. “He must not see me. The lights are in his eyes.”

“Mark,” Jessica hissed, tugging his sleeve. “Look at the screen.”

“Not now, Jessica. I need to get Sterling’s attention.”

“Mark! Look!”

Mark turned around. The massive screen behind him wasn’t showing his sales figures. It was showing a live feed from a security camera.

The camera was positioned inside an office. Mark’s office.

On the screen, recorded footage played. It showed Mark sitting at his desk, feet up. He was on the phone.

Mark (On Screen): “Yeah, just put it on the company card. Category ‘Client Entertainment.’ Who cares? The auditors are idiots. My wife? Ha! She thinks I’m working late. She’s so gullible it’s pathetic. I could tell her the sky is green and she’d start painting the ceiling.”

The ballroom went deathly silent.

Mark turned pale. “That… that’s a deepfake! AI! Someone is sabotaging me!”

He looked down at Sterling, desperate for an ally. “Mr. Sterling! You have to stop this! Security!”