Chapter Four: The Ship That Never Sank

The escrow account chimed. Gu signed another document: the billion would be a nonvoting investment, not a room fee. “I'm not buying your hotel,” he said. “I'm buying a route that lets others reach it.” The lobby vault opened. Black branches burst through white stone and spread silver leaves. A blue flower bloomed before the vacuum window as two hundred million people watched live. Outside, the trail of bare footprints gained one more print. It pointed toward the garden.