2025-11-12 20:27:59Carlos stared at Declan like he'd just sprouted a second head. Then he burst out laughing.
Loud and mocking laughter filled the entire class room.
“You have money?” Carlos said as he wiped tears from his eyes, “Oh, man. That's rich. You really are something, Declan,”
The rest of the class joined in. People snickered and pointed at Declan's clothes.
“Take a look at that outfit,” A red-haired boy from the back called out, “Custom made poverty,”
“Yeah, I can see the ‘brand’” Another voice called out, “Goodwill Special Edition,”
The class erupted in laughter again. Laura placed a hand over her mouth, her shoulders shaking.
Carlos was still grinning as he leaned forward in his seat, “Let me guess. Did you get a raise from working security last night? What did they pay you? Fifty bucks?”
He paused for dramatic effect, “Or wait, maybe they gave you a nice tip? Someone felt sorry for the poor guy in the security booth?”
Declan's expression remained blank, “You don't need to know where I got the money. You just need to know that I'm willing and able to pay,”
“Willing and able,” Carlos repeated, mocking his tone. He looked around at his friends, “Did you hear that? He's willing and able,”
More laughter erupted from the class. Louis slapped his knee, “This is gold,”
Laura shook her head with a satisfied smile on her face. She leaned into Carlos and said, loud enough for the people nearby to hear, “Thank God I cut ties with that fool. Can you imagine? When he empties his pocket trying to save face tonight, where would I go to ask him for money? I really dodged a bullet,”
Carlos kissed the top of her head and caressed her hair, “You sure did, babe,”
Declan waited for the laughter to die down. Then he spoke up again, “My treat comes with one condition,”
The laughter stopped and Carlos raised a brow, “And what would that be, Declan?”
“We split the cost fifty-fifty. You and me,”
There was complete silence again. Everyone stared at Declan.
Then Carlos threw his head back and laughed even harder than before, “Fifty-fifty?. You want me to split the bill with you?” He stood up, still laughing, “Oh, man. This keeps getting better. You really think you can afford even half?”
“Do we have a deal or not?” Declan asked, his hands in his pocket as he stared straight at Carlos.
Carlos’ grin widened. He looked like a cat that had just cornered a mouse, “Deal. Absolutely. Fifty percent is still a price you can never afford in your wildest dreams,”
He walked closer, stopping a few feet away from Declan, “But sure. Let's make it interesting, shall we? When you can't pay your half, I want you on your knees in front of everyone,”
After a short pause, he added, “Begging,”
“Fine,” Declan said with a small smirk.
Louis stood up from his seat, grinning, “This is going to be legendary. I'll be sure to record you begging on your knees. That'll go viral on campus,”
“It's settled then,” Carlos said as he extended his hand mockingly.
Declan didn't take it. He just turned and walked out of the classroom, shoulders squared.
Behind him, the excited whispers started again. This was going to be the event of the semester.
___
Classes ended shortly after.
The energy in the building was electric. Word of what had happened had spread fast and by the time the final bell rang, it seemed like half the school knew about the dinner at Marconi's.
Carlos gathered the fraternity members in the main courtyard. They were all dressed in expensive clothes, designer shoes and watches that cost more than a semester’s tuition.
“Alright boys,” Carlos announced, “Tonight, we are eating like kings. And the best part? Someone else is paying,”
Cheers went up. Some of the members laughed and high fived themselves.
“Where's the chump?” Louis asked, looking around.
“Probably chickened out,” Someone said.
“Nah, he'll show,” Carlos said confidently, “He's too stupid and too proud to back down now,”
Laura appeared beside him and linked her arm through his, “Should we head over, baby?”
“Yes, let's go,”
The group moved together, heading towards the parking lot. Some got into their own cars and others piled into vehicles together. It looked like a parade of wealth.
Marconi's was a twenty minutes drive from the campus. The restaurant – a very beautiful and modern structure – sat on a hill overlooking the city. It was the kind of place where you needed a reservation weeks in advance.
When Carlos and the group pulled up, valets rushed to take their cars. Soft classical music could be heard from inside.
“Damn,” Someone whispered, “This place is fancy,”
“I’ve never been here before,” Another fraternity member said, his eyes wide.
“My dad brought me here once, “ Louis said casually, “The steak cost three hundred bucks,”
Gasps rippled through the group.
Carlos looked around at his friends with satisfaction. “Tonight's going to be unforgettable. Trust me.”
They walked inside. The interior was even more impressive. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceilings. White tablecloth covered each table and the silver ware looked like actual silver.
A server in a crisp, black suit approached them with a polite smile, “Gentlemen, welcome to Marconi's. Do you have a reservation?”
“We do,” Carlos said with confidence, “Under Reyes,”
The server checked his tablet, “Ah, yes. Party of thirty two. Right this way,”
He led them through the main dining area to a private room in the back. People eating at other tables looked up as they walked by.
Some frowned – a large group of college students obviously was not the usual clientele here.
The private room was spacious with a long table set for their party. The floor to ceiling windows gave a breathtaking view of the city.
“Where’s Declan?” Laura asked as she looked around.
“Not here yet,” Carlos said. He glanced at his wrist watch, “We're five minutes early. Give him time to embarrass himself,”
The server stood at the head of the table, waiting patiently. His eyes scanned the group, clearly trying to figure out who was in charge.
His gaze skipped over most of the and landed on Carlos who was dressed in an expensive designer shirt and had that air of wealth about him.
“Sir, what level of service would you like this evening?” The server asked Carlos directly.
Carlos grinned, “Oh, I'm not the one paying. He is,”
He pointed towards the door and everyone turned. Declan stood in the doorway. He'd arrived so quietly, no one has noticed.
The server’s eyes moved to Declan. He took in Declan's unimpressive outfit and his expression shifted to disdain.
“I see,” The server said slowly. He turned his attention to Declan and his tone became noticeably colder, “Sir, we offer several service tiers at Marconi's. We have our premium tier, our standard tier and our basic tier,”
He paused and his eyes travelled over Declan's clothes again, “Given the size of your party, I would recommend the basic tier. It's the most economical option.”
The fraternity members snickered. Laura rolled her eyes dramatically and Carlos stepped forward with an exaggerated look of concern on his face.
“Hold on. With this many people here,” Carlos said, “We can't possibly choose the basic tier,”
He looked at Declan, “Even if you're broke, you can't do that to us. It would be embarrassing,”
He turned back to the server, “Put us down for the standard tier,”
“That won't be necessary,” Declan said.
Carlos turned around slowly, his eyebrow raised, “What? You think we should go for the basic tier after all?”
Then he laughed, “You expect all these people to suffer through the worst service because you're poor?”
“I didn't say I'd choose the basic tier,” Declan replied.
“Then what –” Carlos started.
“I want the premium tier,”
Previous Chapter
Latest Chapter
Chapter 0309 - The Compromise
Chapter Three Hundred and Two – The CompromiseHis wife said she needed three weeks to rebuild what the server attack had destroyed and to verify that the replacement systems hadn’t been compromised, said she needed that time to ensure that whoever had infiltrated her organization during the previous attack had not left backdoors or hidden access points that would allow ongoing monitoring of her organization’s work.Declan said three weeks was acceptable, said that operational timeline allowed for coordination with coalition resources and allowed time for his daughter to develop further positioning within Continuum’s recruitment systems, said that three weeks was strategically viable.His wife replied that three weeks wasn’t fine with her, but she would manage it.The distinction was important and he understood it immediately.She was not saying three weeks was an acceptable timeline, was not agreeing that the schedule worked for her personally or professionally, was saying that she w
Chapter 0308 - The Pressure
The executive who found the irregularity had done so by accident in ways that suggested either extraordinary luck or the kind of attention to detail that prevented people from becoming victims of sophisticated deception.He had cross-referenced a technical specification contained in the acquisition target’s documentation against a public research paper he had happened to read the week before the acquisition was scheduled to close, had noticed that the code comments in the paper matched the acquisition target’s internal documentation almost word for word, had recognized that such perfect correspondence could not be coincidental.No legitimate company would copy code comments directly from published research without modification.The match suggested that someone had taken publicly available code and embedded it inside proprietary systems, had created fake documentation designed to pass cursory review, had constructed an entire acquisition designed to appear legitimate while actually ser
Chapter 0307 - the infiltration
Meanwhile at D Corporation, which had rebuilt itself steadily over the decade following The Court’s collapse and which now operated again as one of the country’s more significant conglomerates under management that Declan had carefully selected but did not directly control, a senior executive requested an urgent meeting with the board.The executive’s name was Patricia Morrison, someone Declan had recruited years ago specifically because she possessed both the business acumen to run a major corporation and the moral clarity to resist pressure to compromise that acumen for short-term profit.She had discovered irregularities in a recent acquisition.The irregularities were subtle, were the kind of discrepancies that would be invisible to most executives reviewing acquisition due diligence, were carefully constructed to appear as normal variations in data collection and analysis methodology, were designed to survive cursory investigation while containing fundamental falsifications.When
Chapter 0306 - Enough
Nathan had been patient long enough.He sat in his office at Vanguard Corporation, looking at the latest reports from his team. Apex was still standing. Still operating. Still holding its ground despite everything he had thrown at them over the past week. The supplier acquisition hadn't been activated yet, the surveillance on the Harper girl hadn't produced anything useful, and the hacking attempt had been blocked clean.None of it had worked the way it was supposed to.He picked up his phone and made a call.Frank Chen answered on the second ring."I have a proposal for you," Nathan said.There was a short silence on the other end. "I'm listening.""You know Apex better than anyone. You spent twenty years inside that company. You know how it works, where it's vulnerable, who can be turned." Nathan leaned back in his chair. "I want you to use that knowledge.""In exchange for what?" Frank asked."A senior position at Vanguard. Compensation that makes what Apex was paying you look like
Chapter 0305 - The Deepening
Declan did not lose his temper.He had spent too many years learning what that cost, had learned during his years in The Court’s systems that anger was a luxury only people with power could afford, had learned that reacting emotionally to threat closed off the strategic options that required clear thinking and measured response.But his wife, watching his face from across the room where she had been reading, quietly set down her book and waited.She understood what that particular stillness in his expression meant, understood that he was processing information that changed the entire landscape of what they were facing, understood that rage was building behind careful control and that her role was simply to be present while he determined how to respond.He told his daughter to keep communicating with Adrian and not to pull back suddenly.The words came out with the precision of someone who had learned to give orders that could not be questioned, someone who understood that the instruct
Chapter 0304 - The Recognition
The Lin family woman called Declan on a Thursday morning before he had finished his first coffee, called with the kind of urgency that suggested she had discovered something that could not wait for formal meeting or secure channel or any of the standard protocols designed to protect sensitive information.She didn’t say hello.She said she had a name.The name wasn’t Adrian.It belonged to someone much older, someone who had been completely invisible in Declan’s understanding of what had survived The Court’s collapse, someone who had never been tried because they had never been found, someone who had disappeared so completely that everyone working with Declan had assumed either death or successful escape beyond the reach of any investigation.For ten years, Declan and everyone working with the Lin family woman and the coalition networks had operated under the assumption that this person was gone, was either dead in the chaos of The Court’s collapse or had escaped to some location wher
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