The Almighty God of Law

A court case, the move

The penthouse was quiet. Ezekiel sat at the large glass table. His laptop was open. Documents were spread out before him. Bryan stood across from him. His tablet was in hand.

"Richard Williams," Bryan began. "Age fifty-eight. CEO of Palmer Industries. Married to Margaret Williams for thirty-five years. Two daughters. Grace and Charlotte."

Ezekiel nodded. His eyes scanned the documents.

"Tell me something I don't know."

Bryan smiled. He tapped his tablet.

"He has a mistress. Her name is Victoria Reed. She's a former model. Twenty-eight years old. They've been seeing each other for the past three years. He set her up in an apartment in the East Village. Pays for everything. Rent. Clothes. Cars. Trips."

Ezekiel looked up. His eyebrows raised.

"Does his wife know?"

"Not yet. But she suspects. There have been arguments. Late nights. Unexplained expenses. Margaret is not stupid. She just chooses to look the other way."

Ezekiel leaned back. His fingers drummed on the table.

"A mistress. That's useful. But I need something bigger. Something that can bring down the entire company."

Bryan scrolled through his tablet.

"Richard Williams has been cooking the books. Palmer Industries is not as profitable as they claim. They've been hiding losses. Taking out loans they can't repay. Using shell companies to move money around."

"How much?"

"Millions. Possibly hundreds of millions. If this gets out, the stock will crash. Investors will pull out. The company will collapse."

Ezekiel smiled. A cold smile.

"Perfect. How did you find this?"

Bryan shrugged.

"I have contacts. Old contacts. People who used to work for your father. People who stayed loyal to the Palmer name. When your parents died, they were scattered. But they still remember. They still have records. They still have access."

Ezekiel stood up. He walked to the window. His mind was working. Planning. Calculating.

"This is good. But I can't use it yet. If I expose the fraud now, they'll know someone is coming for them. They'll go into defense mode. They'll cover their tracks. They'll destroy the evidence."

Bryan nodded.

"So what do we do?"

"We wait. We watch. We gather more information. We find the right moment to strike. When they least expect it. When they feel safe."

Ezekiel turned from the window.

"What about Grace? What about Eden?"

Bryan pulled up another file.

"Grace is the face of the company. She does charity events. Galas. Public appearances. She's beloved by the media. The perfect wife. The perfect mother. The perfect daughter."

Ezekiel's jaw tightened.

"The perfect liar."

Bryan nodded.

"Eden is the CFO. He handles the money. He's the one who's been hiding the losses. He's been playing the stock market too. Using insider information. Making trades based on company secrets. He's made millions."

"He's always been greedy. Even as a child. He wanted everything that was mine. My parents' love. My birthright. My inheritance. Now he wants my wife and my son."

"Your son who isn't yours."

Ezekiel flinched. He hadn't expected that. The words cut deep. Even though he knew the truth. Even though he had heard Grace say it.

"Don't remind me."

Bryan looked down. He knew he had overstepped.

"I apologize. I didn't mean to—"

"It's fine." Ezekiel waved his hand. "I need to hear the truth. Even if it hurts. Especially if it hurts. Pain is a reminder. A reminder of why I'm doing this."

He walked back to the table. He sat down. His face was hard. His eyes were cold.

"What about the accident? The hit and run. The person we hit. Who was it?"

Bryan hesitated. He scrolled through his tablet.

"That's the strange part. There's no record of anyone being seriously injured that night. No hospital admissions. No police reports. No death certificates. It's like nothing happened."

Ezekiel blinked.

"That's impossible. I saw a body. I saw it lying on the road. I saw Grace drive away. I heard the impact. Someone was hit."

Bryan shook his head.

"I checked everything. Multiple sources. Multiple databases. There's nothing. No record of a hit and run that night. No investigation. No charges. Just your confession and your conviction."

Ezekiel's face went pale. His hands trembled.

"It was staged. The whole thing was staged. The accident. The victim. The police. The trial. Everything."

"It seems that way."

Ezekiel stood up. He paced the room. His mind was spinning.

"Grace and her family set me up. They created a crime. They manufactured a victim. They paid off the police. They paid off the judge. They made sure I went to prison."

Bryan nodded.

"Based on the evidence, yes. That's exactly what happened."

Ezekiel stopped pacing. He stared at the wall. His breathing was heavy.

"They destroyed my life. They took everything. My freedom. My family. My name. My reputation. They made me the villain when they were criminals."

He turned to Bryan. His eyes burned with rage.

"I'll find the evidence. I'll expose them. Every single one of them. Grace. Eden. Richard. Margaret. The lawyer. The judge. The police. Every person involved in this conspiracy."

Bryan stepped forward.

"One step at a time, Ezekiel. We need to be careful. We need to be patient. We need to be smart."

Ezekiel nodded. He forced himself to calm down.

"You're right. I know you're right. I'm just... I'm tired. Tired of being the victim. Tired of being used. Tired of being betrayed."

"I understand. But we have to move strategically. We can't let our emotions guide us. We have to use our heads."

Ezekiel sat down. He took a deep breath. His hands were still shaking.

Bryan looked at his tablet. "There's something else. A case. A woman needs help. Her name is Maria Santos. She runs a small bakery in Brooklyn. A corporation is trying to shut her down."

Ezekiel looked up. His eyes sharpened.

"Tell me more."

Bryan read from his tablet.

"Maria Santos has owned her bakery for fifteen years. Her parents owned it before her. A real estate developer wants to buy her property. They've been harassing her. False complaints. Health violations. Noise complaints. They gave her sixty days to vacate."

Ezekiel leaned forward. His mind was already working.

"Who's the developer?"

"Hudson Heights Development. They've never lost a case like this."

Ezekiel smiled.

"Never lost? They haven't met me yet."

He stood up. He walked to his desk.

"Tell her I'll take the case. Have her come to my office tomorrow morning."

Bryan nodded. "I'll arrange it."

Ezekiel turned back to Bryan.

"Now. About Victoria Reed. Arrange a meeting with her. For tomorrow night. A private lounge somewhere discreet."

Bryan typed on his tablet.

"I'll have it arranged."

Ezekiel walked toward the window. His eyes were cold.

"Grace and Eden think they've won. They think I'm broken. They think I'm nothing."

He paused.

"They're about to find out they're wrong."