By midmorning, the Walker Corporation headquarters was already buzzing with activity.
Glass elevators moved silently along the sides of the towering building. Employees crossed the marble lobby floor in steady streams, each person carrying tablets, coffee cups, or stacks of reports. Security personnel stood near the entrance, scanning identification badges with efficient precision.
From the outside, it looked like a perfectly normal workday.
Routine.
Orderly.
Predictable.
But inside Kendrick Walker's private office, things felt far from normal.
Damian stood near the massive desk, staring at the identification badge Kendrick had just handed him.
The small plastic card displayed a name that still felt strange.
Daniel Ross.
Research Consultant — Walker Corporation.
Damian turned it over slowly, studying the clean corporate logo printed across the corner. The photograph was new, taken less than an hour earlier in the building's security office. The image looked professional.
