2026-10-15 23:47:24
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Chapter 15: Seventy Percent
Anthony burst through the front door of Pizza Cot. The familiar smell of baked dough, cheese, and hot oil hit him the moment he stepped inside.On any other day his stomach would have growled, but today he didn't even register that he was hungry, as he was too busy thinking about the sixteen thousand, eight hundred dollars standing between him and his education.He pushed past the counter, ignoring the curious looks from his coworkers, and headed straight for the manager's office.Please. Just this once, let something go right. His boss had asked him to come in, and that had to mean something.Maybe Jameson wanted him to cover an extra shift, or someone had quit and there were more hours going. Or maybe, if Anthony explained his situation properly, the man might even be willing to lend him some money.It was a long shot, and he knew it — sixteen thousand eight hundred dollars wasn't the kind of money people kept in their pockets — but he had to try.He stopped outside the door, took a
Chapter 14: The Price of Refusal
By the time Anthony registered what was happening, he was already sitting in the Chancellor's office.The door had closed behind him, shutting out the noise from the hallway, and the Chancellor was speaking in a calm, measured voice across the desk, but Anthony barely heard a word of it.Scholarship terminated. Just like that.He stared at his hands, trying to understand how everything had come apart so fast.Kingston had been his chance to climb out of poverty and give his mother the life she deserved. He hadn't been born into money. He had no powerful connections, no father who could pick up a phone and fix his future.All he'd had were his grades and the scholarship he'd earned with them, and now someone had taken it away without even bothering to give a reason."Anthony?"He didn't respond."Mr. Hudson?"He finally looked up. The Chancellor had stopped talking and was watching him with an uncomfortable expression."I'm sorry," the older man said. "I know this must be difficult."A
Chapter 13: Revoked
Anthony stood in the middle of the chaos, staring at Mr. Davis like the words had stopped making sense.The engines around him kept roaring, metal crashing, and people shouting, but for a few seconds he heard none of it. All he could hear was Robert's voice from the night before, quiet and cold and certain."You can’t afford to walk away from me, Anthony.”Anthony looked at the machines tearing through the park, then back at the message on the phone. If you need somewhere to live... you know where to come."You've got to be fucking kidding me." His fingers curled into fists."I have no idea what is going on, but I wish you the best, boy," Mr. Davis said, tapping his shoulder, then walked away.He barely heard him. His thoughts were racing. Robert had offered him wealth, power, the Stark name, and Anthony had refused, so Robert had taken away his home. Simple, brutal, effective."He really did this." Anthony almost laughed, not because anything was funny but because the whole thing was
Chapter 12: Nowhere to go
The Stark mansion slipped away behind him later that evening, and Anthony didn't look back. Maybe he should have, because part of him still couldn't believe what he'd done. He'd turned down more money than most people would ever see, along with power, a mansion, and the chance to never worry about a hospital bill again. And somehow, he felt lighter. Maybe he was stupid. Maybe Robert Stark was right. But the decision had been his, and for once nobody else had decided what his life would become. When he got back to the trailer park, he climbed the steps and pushed open the door. "Mom?" The word came out on its own, and the silence answered him. "Right." She wasn't here. She was in the hospital, a much better hospital now, one where nobody was threatening to unplug her machines because he couldn't find twenty thousand dollars in six hours. Still, the trailer felt wrong without her, too still. Her cup sat beside the sink, her sweater draped over the back of a chair, a half-finished
Chapter 11: Rejection
For the first time since Anthony had met him, Robert Stark lost control of his expression. It lasted only a second, but Anthony caught his fingers going still against the desk as the pen slipped from his hand and rolled across the table. Robert didn't reach for it. He just stared, with his eyes widening, as he studied him, like he was trying to decide whether this was something kind of joke. "Do you understand what I'm offering you?" Anthony sighed. "Yes." "I don't think you do." Robert took another step. "The Stark Consortium operates across continents. Thousands of companies depend on decisions made under that name. I'm offering you ownership, power, and security for the rest of your life." "Yeah. I think I get gist of it, " Anthony replied, seemingly disinterested. Robert stopped cold. He searched Anthony's face for the catch — greed, fear, a bluff, anything. He found nothing. "You’re either the stupidest young man I've ever met, or —" He stopped. Anthony could almost feel
Chapter 10: The Price of an Empire
For several seconds Anthony could only stare at Robert Stark. His mind had stalled out somewhere around the words marry one of my daughters. The room felt too quiet.He glanced toward the massive portrait on the wall of the seven daughters, then back at Robert."Sorry." He rubbed the side of his head. "I need to make sure I heard you correctly."Robert's expression didn't move. "Do you expect me to repeat myself?""No." Anthony gave a short, baffled laugh. "But you also don't expect me to believe you just said what I think I just heard.""I said exactly what you heard." Robert leaned back. "You'll inherit the Stark Consortium on the condition that you marry one of my daughters."There it was again. No misunderstanding, no punchline.Robert's gaze drifted to the portrait. "So. Which one interests you?"Anthony nearly choked. "What?""Which of my daughters would you be willing to marry?""You cannot be serious." Anthony waited for even a flicker of amusement, a smile or laugh.
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