The Heir’s Awakening System

The Family Ledger

"Tell me again why we’re trusting a man who freezes his enemies instead of firing them?" Eleanor asked, her voice low over the clatter of the Montreal night-bus.

Marcus kept his eyes on the frostbitten street. "Because he just paid off nine hundred grand of my debt—and because he’s still breathing. That makes him the only banker I’ve met who doesn’t want me dead by breakfast."

Elena snorted. "He wants you **owned**. Big difference."

Claire slept in Emma’s arms, silver threads invisible under the blanket, but the air around her shimmered—like heat above asphalt—whenever the bus lurched. The System inside Marcus ticked weakly: [FAMILY LEDGER—BALANCE: $919,200.00—STATUS: PAID IN FULL—INTEREST: RESUMES 04:00 A.M.]

Paid in full—until tomorrow.

They stepped off at a corner that didn’t exist on tourist maps—alley, rusted gate, single bulb overhead. A man in a charcoal coat waited, hands in pockets, face younger than his voice.

"Receipts first," he said, palm up.

Marcus handed o