Chapter 12 - The Devil’s Bargain
Richard blinked rapidly, hope flickering like a dying match in his hollow chest. "A... a choice? You’re going to give me my accounts back? You’re ready to settle?"
"Don't flatter yourself," Arthur replied flatly. "Your accounts belong to the federal restitution fund and the Sterling Trust. You will never see a single cent of that money again. But you can buy back your freedom."
Richard dropped the fireplace poker with a heavy clatter, stumbling forward on shaking knees until he was nearly touching Arthur’s polished leather shoes. "What do I have to do? Tell me! My soul? My name? Name it, Arthur! Anything!"
Arthur reached into his inner jacket pocket and pulled out a single, thick manila envelope, tossing it carelessly onto the dusty floor between them.
"Sign the confession," Arthur commanded.
Richard scrambled on the floor, ripping the envelope open with frantic fingers. He pulled out a dense legal document covered in stark, unyielding legalese. His eyes scanned the first paragraph, and the color vanished from his face entirely.
It wasn't just a financial confession. It was a full, unvarnished guilty plea for premeditated arson, corporate espionage, and the murder of Arthur and Elena’s parents twenty-five years ago.
"This... this is a life sentence!" Richard shrieked, looking up with wide, horrified eyes. "If I sign this, I’m walking straight into a maximum-security prison for the rest of my natural-born days! You might as well pull the trigger right now!"
"At least in a maximum-security prison, they turn the heating on," Arthur replied coldly, turning his back toward the window and looking out at the glittering skyline. "You have until midnight. You can stay here, freezing to death in your own filth, waiting for the bank to forcibly evict you onto the winter streets. Or you can sign the paper, take responsibility for the blood on your hands, and let this nightmare end."
Arthur took a step toward the private elevator.
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"Think carefully, Richard," Arthur added without turning around. "Because by tomorrow morning, the offer expires, and I won't be the one coming back for you. It will be the creditors."
The elevator doors chimed softly, swallowing Arthur into the dark shaft and leaving Richard alone in the freezing dark with a pen and a death sentence.
