The Million-Dollar Heart

"Damn it!"

Leopold was floored for a solid half-hour when he saw the personnel appointment circulate with the new appointments.

Just the other day, he was consoling Soren, warning him to watch his back with the new Director sniffing around for scapegoats. And now, it turned out he was the one who would be dancing to the Director's tune!

The joke was on him, and he was the last to know.

Anna clapped Leopold on the shoulder, a look of sympathy in her eyes. "Captain, looks like I'll be counting on you from here on out."

Soren walked over, tucking the insignia of the third squad into his desk drawer, but his words were for Anna. "Don't jump the gun calling him 'Captain' just yet. We're all drawing lots again to decide who ends up in which team."

Anna blinked in disbelief. She could not fathom landing in Soren's team in this fifty-fifty toss-up!

The whole organization was reshuffling. Anna pulled her lot. When she saw the number "1" glaring back at her, it felt like the sky was crashing down.

Soren glanced over and patted Anna on the shoulder, "Anna, looks like I'll be counting on you from here on out."

"Counting on my foot! More like a curse!" Anna screamed inside.

She raked her fingers through her hair, her real worry was not about who would be the captain.

It was whether she would still be tasked with her original assignment amid this grand reshuffle at the Vanguard Agency.

As it turned out, Anna's concerns were not unfounded.

"Effective immediately, Squad One is on lockdown. All assignments are on hold, and no one leaves without authorization," Vance announced at the morning briefing.

As a member of Squad One, Anna was naturally confined within the Vanguard Agency, ready for orders.

Percival retreated to his

looked over the new

plotting with such a grandiose reshuffling within the

One was now under Vance's direct command, supposedly because

spoke up, "Percival, this reshuffle is one thing, but having Squad One report directly to the Director? Doesn't that seem off to you?" Percival leaned back. "Has the Director sought

he? To apologize?"

authority so abruptly would sit

to follow Percival. However, there was no way he would not be frustrated

and the Ellington families had been allies for

soon enough," Percival

secret mission for Leopold the day before. Without the details, Percival

could not contain himself either. "With Squad One answering directly to the Director, isn't that a power grab? When the special squad was formed, it was under the Chief's sole

Vance's agenda: to dilute Percival's power

day one, what would

this when Percival's office phone rang with the distinct ringtone of the Director's

gestured for silence and picked up the

come to my office. I've got a

was unexpected. Percival straightened his

up?" Percival asked

handed over two invitations embossed with the Brooks family crest. "My wife would like you and Ms. Hawthorn to join us for dinner tonight. She tried calling Ms. Hawthorn but couldn't get through, so she asked me to

This surprised Percival.

from the Brooks family for a family dinner. The formality

and to the Brooks and the Edwards families, he was just a man doing business abroad. His

for the Brooks family, especially after the myriad of events that had befallen them. They hoped to ride the wave of good fortune to attract more business opportunities. The dinner would host many of Rivenwood's elite, all connected to the Brooks family

not decline either. He took the invitations and said, "I'll ask Vivienne. If she agrees, we'll attend the

I'm also eager to meet this legendary niece who's got our

a token