Chapter 3 - The Price of a Soul
The next afternoon, the documents still lay on Julian’s drafting table, heavy with impossible truths. According to the stock certificates and partnership agreements signed in 1978, his grandfather Arthur wasn't just a bookstore owner. He was Arthur Hayes, the brilliant structural engineer who co-founded Sterling-Hayes Innovations with Beatrice’s late husband, Richard.
When Richard died, Beatrice had ruthlessly pushed Arthur out, forging a buyout agreement while Arthur was hospitalized with a severe heart attack. By the time Arthur recovered, his patents, his shares, and his company had been swallowed by the Sterling machine. Outgunned by Beatrice's lawyers and broken by his partner's betrayal, Arthur had retreated to the shadows to raise Julian in peace.
Julian’s phone buzzed, snapping him out of his shock. It was an unknown number.
"Mr. Hayes. Beatrice Sterling expects you at the Hawthorne Club in twenty minutes. Do not be late." The line went dead.
Julian wore his best suit—which was to say, his only suit—and walked into the private, oak-paneled dining room of the exclusive club. Beatrice was seated at a massive table, sipping tea. She didn't offer him a seat. She simply slid a manila envelope across the polished mahogany.
"Open it," she commanded.
Julian picked it up. Inside was a cashier's check. The number written on it was staggering. Two million dollars.
"This is not a negotiation," Beatrice said, stirring her tea. "This is an exit strategy. You will take the money. You will break Victoria's heart tonight, tell her you met someone else, and you will leave the state. If you try to contact her again, my lawyers will ensure you spend the rest of your life buried under so much litigation you won't be able to afford the ink for your little drawings."
Julian stared at the check. Two million dollars. It was enough to buy his grandfather the best medical care in the world. It was enough to never worry about rent again.
He looked up at Beatrice. The woman who had stolen his family's legacy was now trying to buy his heart.
Julian reached into his pocket, pulled out a cheap plastic pen, and flipped the check over. He wrote two words on the back, slid it across the table to Beatrice, and turned toward the door.
Beatrice picked up the check, her eyes narrowing. Written in bold black ink across the endorsement line were the words: Keep it.
May you like
"You are making a fatal mistake, boy!" Beatrice snapped, her composure cracking for the first time.
Julian paused at the door, looking over his shoulder. "No, Mrs. Sterling. You made one forty years ago when you thought you broke Arthur Hayes. I’ll see you soon."
