Chapter 363

Author's POV The Elegant Realm studio buzzed with deceptively normal activity the morning after the hurricane. Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating workstations where designers bent over sketches and fabric samples. But beneath the surface productivity, tension crackled like electricity in the air. Vivi had called an emergency meeting at precisely 9 AM, her face a mask of barely controlled fury as she surveyed the conference room. Twenty-three employees filed in with varying degrees of anxiety, none quite sure what they were walking into but all sensing the gravity of the situation. Claire entered last, her usual nervous energy amplified tenfold. She clutched a coffee cup like a lifeline, her eyes darting around the room before settling on her hands. "Sit," Vivi commanded, not bothering with pleasantries. The silence that followed was suffocating. Through the glass walls, other employees pretended to work while straining to catch glimpses of the unfoldin