Chapter 4 - The Slumlord’s Empire
At seven o'clock the following morning, Arthur Vance was sitting in his private office above Vance’s Diner on 4th Street.
The office smelled of stale coffee, cheap cigars, and old paper. Vance was a bulky man in his fifties with thinning hair, greasy skin, and a permanent scowl. He was currently reviewing a stack of cash collected from his tenants when his office door burst open.
Two men in dark, perfectly tailored suits stepped into the room. Behind them walked Marcus Sterling.
Vance jumped up from his chair, reaching toward his desk drawer where he kept a revolver. “What the hell is this?! Who gave you permission to come up here?!”
Marcus moved with terrifying speed. Before Vance could open the drawer, Marcus’s heavy hand slammed it shut, pinning Vance’s wrist to the wood with bone-crushing force.
“Sit down, Mr. Vance,” Marcus said, his voice as calm as ice.
Vance gasped in pain, dropping back into his leather chair as Marcus released his wrist. “Do you know who I am?! I have friends in the City Council! I’ll have you locked up by noon!”
“Your friends in the City Council are currently busy handling federal inquiries,” a smooth, authoritative voice announced from the hallway.
Cade Ellington walked into the office. He wore a navy suit, his dark hair neatly styled, his expression radiating absolute dominance. He looked around the shabby room with mild disdain before fixing his gaze directly on Vance.
Vance blinked, recognizing Cade instantly from television business broadcasts and local newspapers. “Ellington? What is a billionaire doing in my restaurant?”
“I found something that belongs to you last night in my garage,” Cade said, taking a seat across from Vance’s desk and crossing his legs casually. “Or rather... two little girls you believed you owned.”
Vance’s eyes widened slightly before turning hard and defensive. “Those kids? They’re my late tenant’s daughters. They owe me money. They ran away from my property after stealing cash from my safe.”
“They are eight and four years old, Vance,” Cade said, his tone dropping an octave, carrying a terrifying edge. “You held them hostage in an unheated basement, forced them into child labor, and stole their mother’s personal effects.”
Vance sneered, leaning back in his chair and trying to regain his posture. “You don't know how things work down here, Ellington. You live up in your golden tower. In this neighborhood, people pay their debts. Their mother died owing me over six thousand dollars. I took the kids in out of charity.”
“Charity?” Cade chuckled, though there was zero humor in his eyes. “You stripped them of their dignity and left them to freeze to death.”
“Listen to me, big shot,” Vance growled, pointing a thick finger at Cade. “You have no legal right to those children. I filed temporary guardianship papers with a local magistrate two weeks ago. Hand them over, or I’ll call the police right now and report you for kidnapping.”
Cade leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Go ahead. Call them.”
Vance paused, surprised by Cade’s absolute composure.
May you like
“Call your corrupt friends at the 9th District,” Cade continued smoothly. “Ask them if they can help you while three separate federal agencies—the Department of Justice, the IRS, and the State Attorney General’s Office—are currently freezing every single one of your bank accounts.”
Vance’s face drained of color. “What... what did you say?”
