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𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐅𝐎𝐔𝐑

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"The PR team is inbound." Kendall's assistant Jess said as she looked up from her phone. "They're excited to get started."

"That's what I like to hear." Kendall replied, clapping his hands together and rubbing them.

He'd barely slept since he'd left the yacht and yet his body felt electric, his mind was on fire. Things had moved quickly since he'd arrived back at New York as he'd begun to line his ducks with the help of a growing team. Sure he'd lost the support of everyone affiliated with his father, save for Greg who'd bumbled his way into the hot seat, but what he'd found in the dust and rubble of the aftermath was worth it. He'd finally found the courage to stand up to his father, using the fire of self-righteousness that had been building the more he examined Logan's actions.

Logan was not a good man. But Kendall could be good. Kendall could be great. He could take the sins and ills of his father and transmute them into a goliath of his own self-styling. And then, maybe then, could he hope to garner the respect and adoration he craved.

He couldn't lie to himself though, his final conversation on the yacht had been a spanner in the works when it came to his confidence in the plan. What had started as embers had almost been snuffed when he'd seen who Logan had sent as his assassin. Cora's look of dejection was still imprinted on the surface of his mind. Their relationship was complicated, what had started as a petty gambit against his brother had turned into something more. He'd been attracted to her, a jarring realisation only furthered by their shared vices. Yes, Kendall had introduced Cora to coke, but it was the way substances eclipsed her that Kendall had related to so heavily. Game recognize game, so to speak.

He had known what he was doing when he'd asked her to come with him, telling her about Andrew Dodds had been testing the waters in a way. He'd long been convinced they were cut from the same cloth, and her lack of revulsion at his confession proved so. In a way, their conversation on the yacht had shown him that maybe she could see it now too. There was no moral high ground when it came to dallying with the Roys, especially not when she was now officially beneath his father's thumb.

In the pocket of his trousers, his phone suddenly trilled. Kendall turned away from Jess, allowing her to get back to her job, which was increasing in its intensity by the hour. Greg, who had been a few rooms over attending to Rava's hydration needs, re-entered the vast living space of his ex-wife's penthouse.

"Uh, she is very happy with the water I gave her. She said it was the best water that ... That someone had ever poured into a glass at her behest."

"That's great man, real great. Yeah we just gotta keep her happy. She's doing us all a big favour by letting us huddle here but she gets the vision, she believes in the message, so really who's benefiting here, you know what I mean?" He replied as he swiped open his phone. Instantly a frown creased his brow as he took in the message he'd just received.

"What is it?" Greg asked, peering over Kendall's shoulder. He didn't answer, instead angling the phone for Greg to see the photo of Roman, Cora and Shiv all squished together in the backseat of a car. Roman was leaning over Cora, an exaggerated grin plastered on his face as he flipped off the camera. Cora meanwhile had been caught mid-blink and Shiv's face was turned towards the car window, a scowl resting on her lips. A text accompanied the photos.

[TEXT: Roman] see you soon judas x

"Guess we got ourselves a party," Kendall muttered under his breath. "Alright motherfuckers, let's get ready to dance."

________

Cora caught Shiv's wrist between her fingers right as the redhead moved to open the car door. Roman had already slipped out of the backseat and was now navigating the throng of reporters and paparazzi that had followed them from Waystar's building to Rava Roy's apartment, Kendall's new centre of operations. Through the tinted windows of the company car, Roman could be seen batting away microphones as the driver of the car helped escort him to the front doors of the building.

"What?" Shiv said sharply, her brow creasing. She'd been silent the entire car ride and the vibe in the backseat had been icy.

"Just ... Shiv you know I don't want this, right? I don't know why he's ... You know that right?"

It was partially a lie, but Cora could hardly divulge that Logan had her by the metaphorical balls. Walking away was not an option. She was a pawn in Logan's game, and for whatever reason he'd chosen her as his opening move against Kendall.

"Yeah, totally. Look, I just want to get this over and done with, alright? Nothing personal."

"But it is personal. I don't want you to hate me over something I have zero control over." Cora said, persisting. Shiv huffed an annoyed sigh under her breath. There was wariness in her bright blue eyes as she allowed her gaze to meet Cora's.

"Isn't that line kind of getting old, Cora? It's never your fault, and yet I feel like I can think of a million ways you could avoid moments like this. Let's be real, you've never really minded if my feelings were collateral, yet you bend over backwards for everyone else. Roman, Kendall, my dad. Just for once it'd be nice to be put first."

With that, Shiv pulled her arm away from Cora's grasp and opened the car door. Cora had no time to react as she followed after Shiv, doing her best to affix a neutral expression on her features as they pushed their way through the crowd. It wasn't until they had met with Roman in the foyer and followed him into the elevator that Cora allowed herself to self-soothe against Shiv's scalding remarks by digging her nails into the palm of her hand.

Greg peeled the door to the penthouse open, clearing the path for the three to enter. In the commotion of Kendall's bombshell, it hadn't even occurred to Cora that Greg had jumped ship, but the moment she met his timid stare with her own, she felt a surge of indignation. She paused in the hallway as Greg closed the door, his head slightly bowed in a display of submission. There was an awkward pause as Cora glowered at him, narrowing her eyes.

"I guess we find ourselves in a real Romeo and Juliet pick then, huh?" Greg said finally. Cora couldn't help staring at him in stunned silence. The nerve.

" Yeah well, et tu brute, asshole. I'm glad you're finding some enjoyment in this," Cora snapped. "You know this is enabling, right? Kendall versus Logan? Clearly he isn't well, Greg, not if he's pulling shit like this."

"Wait, you sound angry? Kendall said he told you all about this. He said offered you a chance to come on b-"

"Yeah Greg, I really seem like I was informed in advance, don't I?" Cora replied sharply. "If you're actually concerned about my feelings, you'll talk him down from this mess he's made."

"I don't think anyone's going to be able to do that." Greg replied in a nervous chuckle, running a hand through his hair. "He's pretty set on this whole, um, fuck his dad thing."

"Right. And you're just going to stand by him while he fucks the person who gave you a leg up? Sit in the corner like a cuck while Kendall goes to town?" She spat.

Greg shrugged in response, only stoking Cora's mounting annoyance. Before she could open her mouth to insult him, she heard a sharp whistle, finding Roman waiting expectantly for her. Without another comment to the lanky brunette, she turned to follow after him.

"Having buyer's remorse? You've got him looking like a lost puppy." Roman said beneath his breath. Cora could've sworn he was holding back a smirk.

"Not the first regretful fuck of my life." She replied as they entered earshot of Kendall and Shiv.

Kendall was visibly more exuberant than he had been at the press conference, his chest puffed forward and hands clasped before him as he looked in their direction. Cora couldn't deny the sting she felt as she met his eye. She'd all but confessed to having feelings for him less than 48 hours ago and now she was standing before him as an adversary.

Sitting on the nearby couches, her eyes trained to her phone, was Naomi, who spoke up as Roman and Cora joined Kendall and Shiv. "You can say that again, sister." Under his breath, Roman whistled once again.

"The girlfriend, the mistress and the wife, all in the same building. Where is Rava?"

This seemed to catch Kendall off-guard, his brow creasing. "Not those kind of jokes under her roof, Rome."

"How terribly civilised of you, Kendall. Real gentleman-type behaviour. C'mon, humour me now, I just wanna know which one you're asking to prom."

Kendall opened his mouth to reply and seemed to think better of it. Instead, he gestured for them to follow after him, calling over his shoulder as he began to walk. "Not out here, we can talk in the kid's room."

"Ah yes, the kid. Not gonna bother clarifying which one, are you?" Roman muttered beneath his breath.

The trio trailed behind Kendall as he opened one door, then another, finally finding the correct room he'd been aiming for. He stood aside as they filed into what clearly was the room of a teenage girl, evidenced by the tasteful yet decidedly feminine décor and sporadic posters scattered on the walls. On the desk nearby, Cora spied a labelled textbook, the name 'Sophie' scrawled on it in neat penmanship.

She seated herself uneasily on the end of the bed as Shiv flopped down at the head. Roman spun Sophie's desk chair from its place, sitting down and promptly bringing his leg to rest across his knee. Kendall remained standing, folding his arms across his chest. Cora couldn't help thinking that he looked particularly villainous.

"Well, I'm guessing the old man sent you to talk me out of this. And I'm not going to lie. I'm glad. I'm glad you're all here, each and every one of you, because I think you're all reasonable people, you know, when you want to be." Kendall began. "We have ... A decision of utmost value on our hands. We're standing on the edge of what could be considered the most important moment of the 21st century. Waystar Royco, arbiter of news, business, politics, culture, you fucking name it, is currently in the palm of all of our hands if only we realise our potential to wiel-"

"Yeah can you save the campaign speech? We're all fucking exhausted so let's just cut through the bullshit to the heart." Shiv reclined against the pillows of the bed. "You made a power play against dad. It got a little press, made a little ruckus. But now you can come home and apologise, to him and all of us, because if you try to do ... Whatever you're doing right now, it's not going to end well for anyone. So just ... Yeah I'd say just stop, swallow your pride and hope dad doesn't make you a eunuch."

"Heh, talk about campaign speeches. Thought I was sitting through a triple feature of Lord of the Rings." Kendall said, laughing at his joke before pretending to snore loudly. "But, uh, no. I don't think I'm going to do that, Siobhan, I like to stick to plans when I make them."

"Uh huh. Well how're you going to innovate the paradigm or whatever you're trying to achieve if you plan on burning everything down?"

"Well, if you'd have let me finish, I would've told you that we're in the power position here. I've had talks with Stewy and Sandy Furness, and I'm thinking maybe, just maybe, they're ready to get on the Ken train."

"Are you manic or something?" Cora snorted. "Stewy's hardly a fan of you, at least from our last conversation. He was pretty happy to throw you under the bus."

"No, I'm not manic. Actually, that's a better question to ask you, right? Are you manic Cora? Stressed? You want a drink? Little drinky winky?" Kendall shot back.

"Alright, cut it out you two." Roman intervened. Cora sucked her cheeks in, realising that Greg must have said something. God she was going to kill him.

"Why? Are you offering? Make me a cocktail and bring me a couple lines. We're in your ex wife's place after all, let's stoke some old memories."

"Hey fuck you," Kendall replied sharply. "Don't make jokes about that in my kid's room."

"Don't make jokes about that in my kid's room."

"Ah!" Shiv suddenly yelped. "Can we get to the point? Ken, come on, back on task. Cora, don't poke the guy with the dynamite shoved up his ass."

Cora let out a huffy breath, averting her gaze from Kendall, who also fell silent. Satisfied with the quiet, Shiv gestured for her brother to speak. Kendall cleared his throat, centering himself with a deep breath. "Look, my point is, Dad's a fucking cancer. Come to my side. All of you. Even you Cora. Come to my side and fight him on this. We let the feds come in, gut the place, phoenix rising from the ashes us thr- Us four. Alright? Think of the headlines. 'Next Gen: Waystar Royco's Hotshot Team of ... Hotshots'."

"Mm I feel like you're maybe forgetting something." Roman said, narrowing his eyes at his older brother. "Shareholder vote? Ringing any bells?"

"We deal with that when it happens."

"Yeah ok, totally, so ... cut the head off the snake so a foreign one that's even less inclined to pass the company to you sprouts up in its place," Roman replied. "Fucking genius, the Einstein of business over here."

"And apparently Dad doesn't need any more encouragement to not pick one of us." Shiv muttered darkly. Cora inhaled sharply as she balled the fabric beneath her into her fist. Shiv opened her mouth, having realised her misstep, but Kendall swooped on her words like a hawk.

"So he's naming Gerri as interim? That's why you're here?"

"That's not what I sai-"

"No but that's what you meant, isn't it? That's why you walked in here looking like you sucked face with a lemon."

"Hey, the lemon has a name." Roman said. "Unfortunately for everyone here, it isn't accompanied by an inmate identification number."

"Ok number one, fuck you Roman, I didn't want anyone going to prison much less my own husband." Shiv snapped. "And number two, it's not Gerri he's trying to name, it's Cora."

Shock spread across Kendall's face as he turned slowly to Cora. She braced herself for his reaction, expecting distress or anger but instead he threw his head back as a howl of laughter unleashed itself from his throat. The three watched in silence as Kendall loudly guffawed, doubling over as the laughter took his toll. Cora felt what little sympathy she had had for him circling the drain as she felt her anger rising. When he finally finished, his laughter fading out, she stood.

"For your information, we're doing you a favour by being here. Your dad was ready to hand everything over to me but I insisted that we try to just dead this to save everyone the hassle."

"Oh yeah, keep going Cora. The saviour complex really adds to the punchline." Kendall replied with a snicker. He turned to his siblings. "Really? This is what he's up to? New York's least successful sober socialite as interim CEO. What next? Which Olsen twin is he hiring as COO?"

"This one." Roman raised his hand. He had also risen now, crossing to stand beside Cora, his lips pursed. "As much as I love the shit-flinging, I think it's obvious we're not reaching a resolution about this right now, so how about we just call it a night and you can hand us the apology letter for dad in the morning."

"Yeah no offence little bro but that's just not going to happen." Kendall's voice has lowered several octaves. He planted a hand on his brother's shoulder. "No, this is ... This is bigger than me now, I'm doing this for the women who have been systematically overlooked by the system that is the old guard. This is accountability. This is Me Too, motherfuckers, this is a culture shift moment."

"Awesome, Kendall's Me Too-ing women. Can we get that as a direct quote? It sounds like we might need it for your eulogy." Roman replied, shrugging off Kendall's hand. "Seriously, Ken, call the fucking death squad off. We're not fucking around."

"Yeah? What's she going to do? Genuine question, Rome. What's she going to do to me that's so bad?" Kendall's eyes met her own, a challenge sparking as he set his jaw. Cora tried to keep her expression resolute, but deep down, she knew he was right. Who the fuck was she? The only person capable of destroying Kendall was Logan. She was a useful idiot, a court jester on the executive level. She was in over her head and everyone in the room knew it.

A knock from the door snapped her back to reality. Jess cracked the door, her voice carrying through the gap. "PR's here."

"That'll be our cue." Cora muttered, standing.

She couldn't be here any longer, the sooner she was out of the room, out of the apartment the better. Her skin crawling, she pushed past Kendall, opening the door and wordlessly moving past Jess, who regarded her with a wide eyed gaze. She was vaguely aware of words being exchanged between Kendall and Jess as she navigated her way back to the living room, her mind glazing over them in her haste to leave.

As she passed the couches in the middle of the room, a familiar voice stopped her in her tracks. Goosebumps rippled up her arms as she heard her name, a chill settling in her body. She wondered, in vain, if she had imagined the voice, if perhaps the stress of the previous day had finally gotten to her. He couldn't possibly be here, in Rava Roy's apartment, entangled in the growing trash heap that was her predicament. No, he couldn't be here, because she had vowed she would never allow him into her life again.

"Cordelia," Arthur said again. Slowly she turned to face him, her throat tightening at the sight of him. She knew from the way he was dressed that he was working, his suit pressed and tailored against his lean frame. Arthur stood beside a dollish girl who couldn't have been older than mid 20s, her hair shorn to her scalp, emphasising her large eyes. He smoothed a hand through his dark curls as he took a step toward her. Cora threw up her palm, causing him to stop in her tracks.

"No," she said, though the sound was strangled and hoarse. She couldn't cry, not in front of this room, but the effort to restrain her distress was obvious. Something had become suddenly very small about her appearance, her breathing quick and shallow. Kendall's arms were crossed against his chest as he strolled towards Arthur, a smug look resting on his face. It was so much easier to be angry than to be scared. "You hired my ex boyfriend?"

"He insisted. Highly recommended though. Looking forward to getting to know him." Kendall replied as he thumped Arthur on the back. There was a flicker of annoyance on Arthur's face which disappeared quickly, replaced by his usual placid expression. Cora felt her skin crawl.

"This is ... Fucking low. You are fucking low, Kendall Roy. You'r- You're a sick, sick man."

"You're in the big leagues now, Cordelia Vernon." He responded, his voice devoid of sympathy. "You either dance or get off the stage."

She had to go, she had to get out of there. Better yet, she had to disappear. Arthur's appearance had pushed her over the edge. He knew her. He knew her darkness, her rot, and he was going to punish her for it. Before she could be stopped, she was out of the apartment, clutching her chest as she bruised her finger from jamming it against the button for the elevator. She didn't know Roman was behind her until he had spun her around to face him.

"Hey! Hey." Roman snapped his fingers in front of her face. Distracted from the frustration and sadness bubbling at the back of her throat, Cora dared to meet his eyes. When she did, she saw his gaze was strong and determined. She found herself straightening her posture and standing to attention, mesmerised by the look spreading across his face. "You're not going to let this get to you. That back there? That is bullshit. But you're not going to let him, either of them, get to you."

"I'm not?" Cora breathed. She suddenly felt light, as if his words had lifted a weight from her. "I'm ... Not."

"No, you're not. You're not running away and you're not taking this lying down." Roman was close now, his fingers still held before her. She was half-convinced he had cast a spell on her, so quickly had the fear she felt inside of her dispelled. "You're gonna get even. We're gonna get even. You're going to be a fucking killer."

He reached down and grabbed her phone from her hand, holding it up in front of her face to unlock it. She knew he was typing his father's number before she'd even fully registered what he was doing. Then he thrust the phone back towards her, waiting as she slowly took it from his hand.

Logan's voice rang clear through the line. "You have an answer."

"Yes." Cora said, watching Roman nod as she took in a deep breath. It dawned on her as she felt something building inside of her chest, unfurling like a plume of smoke after destruction, that she had never been so resolute in a decision before.

"I accept the position."