Chapter 6 - The Sterling Ultimatum“Sebastian,” Richard Sterling said, stepping into the room with heavy, deliberate footsteps. His eyes swept over Clara in the hospital bed, then locked onto me with a piercing intensity.
I stood up immediately, stepping between him and Clara. “Mr. Sterling. I didn't expect you here. If this is about the contract delay—”
“Forget the contract for a moment, Vance,” Richard interrupted, holding up his hand. “My security detail picked up some interesting chatter coming out of federal detention this morning. Your brother, Julian... before they locked him in a holding cell, he made a frantic phone call to an overseas competitor.”
My blood ran cold. “What kind of call?”
Richard stepped closer, his expression grim. “Julian knew his life was over. So, out of pure spite, he tried to sell the master encryption keys and the supply chain blueprints of your upcoming logistics network to our biggest rival in Europe—the Vanguard Group.”
The room seemed to spin.
The supply chain blueprints. The proprietary algorithms I had spent a decade developing. If Vanguard got their hands on those, Vance Logistics wouldn't just lose the Sterling contract—we would be completely wiped out of the global market within forty-eight hours.
“The federal agents intercepted the transmission before it went live,” Richard continued, nodding toward the two agents behind him. “Your brother didn't just commit corporate embezzlement, Sebastian. He committed high-level industrial espionage. He tried to sell out his own flesh and blood to ruin you completely.”
I stared at the floor, my fists clenched so hard my knuckles turned white.
I had thought arresting him for embezzlement was the end of it. I had thought my family couldn't sink any lower. But malice driven by entitlement knew no bottom.
“Where is he?” I asked, my voice dangerously low.
“Being transferred to a maximum-security federal penitentiary as we speak,” Richard replied. “No bail. No visitor access. Total isolation.”
Richard walked over to the bedside, looking down at Clara with a respectful nod. “Mrs. Vance, I am deeply sorry for what you’ve had to endure. A man who cannot protect his own home cannot protect his business. But after seeing how fast and ruthlessly you dismantled the rats inside your own house, Sebastian... I know you’re a man of steel.”
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He reached into his tailored suit jacket, pulled out a thick leather folder, and placed it gently on the table.
“The Sterling contract is yours,” Richard said firmly. “Signed, sealed, and delivered. Plus a twenty-percent bonus for your trouble. Use it to take care of your wife and your new baby.”
