Chapter 38 - The Voice Across the Wire
Inside the cab of the snowcat, the radio console suddenly squawked with static. A single, distinct chime sounded—an incoming secure peer-to-peer transmission.
Leo looked up, startled. "Dad... someone has locked onto our snowcat’s radio receiver. They’re pinging our exact GPS coordinates."
Daniel reached over and clicked the receiver switch. "Speak."
A heavy, wheezing breath filled the cab, followed by the dry, mocking chuckle that had haunted Daniel’s entire life.
"You always did have an affection for outdated diesel machinery, Daniel," Arthur Sterling said, his voice crystal clear over the digital channel.
Daniel did not flinch. "I see you standing in the west wing, Arthur. I have eyes on your position."
"And I have satellite telemetry on yours, my boy," Arthur replied smoothly, though the strain of his failing lungs was audible between every phrase. "Did you honestly believe you could cross the Uri cantonal border without triggering my orbital tracking network? You underestimate the reach of the family you tried so desperately to abandon."
"The family died the day you cut Claire open in that clinic," Daniel spat, his knuckles turning white on the steering lever.
A cold pause stretched over the airwaves. When Arthur spoke again, the mockery had vanished, replaced by an icy, absolute authority.
"Claire was weak. She lacked the constitution to bear the weight of what the Sterling dynasty requires. She would have divided the estate among beggars and charities. I preserved the seed. I preserved the lineage."
"You built an abattoir," Daniel said.
"I built an empire!" Arthur’s voice cracked with sudden fury. "And that empire demands three heirs at the altar of the Lucerne magistrate tomorrow morning at ten o'clock. Bring me the girl, Daniel. Bring me the boy Leo. Surrender them to my guardianship, and I will allow you to walk away with your life. Refuse... and the child in this nursery will not survive to see his second sunrise."
The line went dead.
In the cab, absolute silence descended. Evelyn was weeping silently, her hands pressed over her mouth. Leo looked up at his father, his eyes wide, terrified, searching for answers.
"Dad," Leo whispered. "What do we do?"
May you like
Daniel set the radio receiver back on its cradle. He turned around, looking at his son, then at Evelyn and the sleeping baby in her arms.
"We don't surrender," Daniel said quietly. "We give him exactly what he asked for. We give him his heirs."
