The Sphinx's Palm

Maya adjusted the wide-brimmed hat she'd bought to hide her eyes—red from three nights of insomnia, courtesy of the merger that wouldn't die. The charity gala at the Griffith Observatory was supposed to be a celebration. Instead, it felt like a funeral for her integrity.

Across the room, Richard Thorne held court like a king holding court. He was bullish in negotiations, a man who treated human beings like assets to be acquired or divested. Last week, he'd demanded she fire fifteen people from her team to meet quarterly projections. She'd refused. Now she was watching him charm investors, his hand resting possessively on his wife's palm.

The observatory's centerpiece rose above them: the astronomical sphinx, its concrete face inscrutable beneath the lights. Maya had always loved the mythological creature—part lion, part human, part bird, an impossible riddle made stone. At least the sphinx had the decency to remain silent while it destroyed you.

"You're wearing your thinking face," said Sam, sliding up beside her with two flutes of champagne. "Thorne's looking for you. Something about 'ironing out details' on the Indonesian deal."

Maya accepted the glass. "He means he wants me to cave on the environmental compliance budget."

"That's the rumor." Sam's palm brushed her wrist—casual, familiar. They'd been dancing around whatever this was for six months. Another complication she didn't need.

"I'm not caving, Sam. Those safety protocols exist for a reason."

"I know." He hesitated. "There's another position. Opening in Zurich. Senior VP. Real autonomy."

The sphinx seemed to watch her from its pedestal. All riddles, no answers, destruction wrapped in mystery.

"And leave my team to Thorne's mercy?" She drank deeply. "I'd rather wear this hat to the board meeting."

Sam laughed, surprised. "You know what? You should."

She looked at him—really looked. Maybe some riddles didn't need solving. Maybe they just needed to be lived with.

"Ask me about Zurich tomorrow," she said. "Tonight, I'm going to tell Thorne exactly what I think of his bullish bullshit."

She took off her hat. Let them see her red eyes. Let them see everything.