Chapter 6 - The Setup
The following morning, I called Marcus into my private home office.
He arrived impeccably dressed in a tailored Tom Ford suit, looking like the loyal best friend he pretended to be.
"Arthur, buddy, you look terrible," Marcus said, taking a seat across from my heavy mahogany desk.
"Are you sure you should be working?"
I slouched in my leather executive chair, rubbing my eyes wearily.
"I'm not doing well, Marcus," I rasped, making my voice sound brittle and weak.
"The doctors can't figure it out."
"I feel like my body is shutting down."
Marcus leaned forward, his face a perfect mask of tragic sympathy.
"Don't talk like that, Arthur," he said softly.
"You're going to pull through this."
"I need you to do something for me, Marcus," I continued, ignoring his fake encouragement.
"I want to restructure the trust funds for the boys."
"And I want to transfer immediate executive control of the Sterling Empire to Victoria."
I watched his eyes carefully.
A subtle, greedy twitch pulsed at the corner of his jaw.
He couldn't believe how easy this was.
"Arthur, are you absolutely certain?" Marcus asked, pretending to be hesitant.
"I am," I lied smoothly.
"Bring all the finalized legal documents to the house tonight."
"We will have a private dinner, just the three of us."
"I will sign everything over."
"I just want my family to be safe if... if something happens to me."
Marcus nodded solemnly, though I could practically see the fireworks exploding in his head.
"I will have the lawyers draft everything immediately," he promised.
As soon as he left the office, I locked the heavy doors behind him.
Silas stepped out from the shadowy alcove behind my bookshelf.
"Did you get the cameras installed?" I asked, my voice instantly returning to its normal, commanding strength.
"Every inch of the dining room and parlor is wired with high-definition, micro-lenses," Silas confirmed.
"Audio is crystal clear."
"The live feed is routed directly to a secure server at the FBI field office."
I walked over to the grand window, looking out over the sprawling green lawns of my estate.
Victoria and Marcus thought they were coming to a victory dinner tonight.
They thought they were going to watch a billionaire sign away his kingdom before taking his final breath.
They had no idea they were walking straight into an execution chamber.
"Make sure Elena's lawyer is ready," I instructed Silas.
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"By midnight, she is going to be a free woman."
"And my wife will be trading her designer gowns for a jumpsuit."
