Let’s start the day

The morning sunlight filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city skyline nearly forty stories below.

The presidential suite was larger than most apartments. Dark hardwood floors stretched throughout the room, accented by modern artwork worth more than most people's annual salaries. A marble fireplace stood against one wall, while an elegant sitting area overlooked the sprawling skyline below. Everything about the suite screamed wealth, power, and success.

Alexander swung his legs over the side of the king-sized bed and rubbed both hands over his face. Another nightmare. It had been six years.

Six years since he'd left Black Ops. Six years since Operation Sandstorm had gone horribly wrong. Yet every few nights, he found himself back in that desert. He reached for the glass of water on the bedside table and drained it in one long swallow. The cool water did little to steady his racing heart.

The digital clock read 6:12 a.m.

He wasn't getting back to sleep. With a quiet sigh, Alexander pushed himself to his feet and walked toward the enormous bathroom. Polished white marble reflected the morning light, making the room almost glow. He stopped in front of the mirror.

Thirty-four. Six-foot-three. His dark hair was longer now than in the military with the first hints of silver beginning to appear at his temples. Piercing dark blue eyes that had seen far too much. A faint scar traced the edge of his jaw—a souvenir from a mission that had nearly cost him his life. Slightly hidden behind his facial hair.

Most people saw the tailored suits, the luxury watches, and the confident CEO who commanded boardrooms across the country. Very few ever saw the soldier that still lived beneath the surface. He turned on the oversized rainfall shower. Steam quickly filled the room as hot water cascaded from the ceiling. Alexander stepped beneath the spray, closed his eyes, and let the heat wash away the cold sweat clinging to his skin.

It never washed away the memories. Faces flashed through his mind. The sounds still echoed in his mind. Brothers he'd fought beside. Friends he'd buried. Promises he'd never been able to keep. Weighed heavily. He took a slow breath and forced the memories back into the corners of his mind. Today wasn't about the past.

Today was about the future one he’d spent the last 6 years trying to accomplish and build brick by brick. This day was about Hawke Industries and their merger with ParaPharma Technologies and Pharmaceuticals had been nearly eighteen months in the making. Late night phone calls, stacks of paper work, flying all over the country to ensure this was the best investment before signing the contracts. While parapharma wasn't exactly a huge company it wasn’t to small either it has shrank in sizable opportunities over the last few years and weren’t nearly the size or financial powerhouse that it previously had been, they possessed a unique portfolio of cutting-edge medical research that had immediately captured Alexander's interest.

If today's negotiations went according to plan, the partnership would go down as one of the most significant moments in Hawke Industries' history. The clinical research and trial phases of some of the cancer research they'd been doing will help escalate Alex's R&D department. The merger had the potential to generate billions of dollars, create thousands of jobs, and reshape the future of both companies.

But for Alexander, the true value wasn't measured in stock prices or quarterly earnings. It was measured in lives. Tonight's Cancer research charity gala would bring together investors, politicians, CEOs, philanthropists, and some of the wealthiest people in the country beneath glittering crystal chandeliers. Officially, they would celebrate the merger.

Unofficially, Alexander intended to open every checkbook in the room. The evening's charity auction would raise millions for cancer research and provide treatment for patients who couldn't afford the care they desperately needed. Alex's has sponsored over 300 people's medical treatments although one of the wealthiest men in America he alone couldn't keep sponsoring people without the correct resources.

That was the only thing that made the endless speeches, forced smiles, and political networking bearable. Alexander almost laughed. He'd once planned covert military operations deep inside hostile territory. Now he planned seating charts, shareholder presentations, and fundraising events.

Funny how life changed. Forty minutes later, He'd trimmed his facial hair and shaped it up then dressed in a perfectly tailored navy suit, Alexander fastened the silver cufflinks his father had given him just before retiring from the military.

A small smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. I need to call Dad after the merger. He'd been so wrapped up in preparing for today's meeting that they hadn't spoken in almost a week, something that rarely happened. Alexander slipped on his watch and looked at his reflection one last time.

The man staring back looked every bit the powerful executive the world expected. Confidence. Composure. Untouchable. Not a trace remained of the exhausted soldier who had awakened from another battlefield nightmare. His phone buzzed on the marble countertop.

Emma – Executive Assistant

"Your car is downstairs. The merger meeting begins at eight sharp. The ParaPharma board arrived twenty minutes early." Alexander picked up his Rolex from the dresser and fastened it around his wrist.

"They're eager," he muttered.

He grabbed his leather briefcase before taking one last look around the luxurious suite.

Some people dreamed of living in places like this.

Alexander dreamed of escaping the places he'd left behind years ago.

He stepped into the hallway as the suite door clicked shut behind him. By the end of the day, one company would cease to exist.

By the end of the night, the city's most influential people would be raising champagne glasses beneath glittering crystal chandeliers, celebrating not only the merger but also the millions of dollars raised for pediatric cancer research and the groundbreaking research and development Hawke Industries would acquire through ParaPharma.

For the first time in months... Alexander actually looked forward to the outcome.