Chapter 58: Family Debts

[Asset Successfully Deployed.]

[Acquisition Confirmed: Legal Ownership of the Obsidian Tower, Sunstone District.]

[Asset Valuation: $3.2 Billion USD.]

Jude’s eyes narrowed in supreme satisfaction.

The Obsidian Tower was the crown jewel of the city’s luxury residential market... a ninety-story skyscraper composed entirely of glass and steel.

Instantly adding a multi-billion-dollar piece of architectural dominance to his portfolio without spending a single dime of his own liquidity was the ultimate rush of power.

As Jude reviewed the property deeds, his private phone rang.

He glanced at the caller ID and arched an eyebrow. It was a rare call from his Aunt Helen.

Helen was one of the very few blood relatives Jude still occasionally acknowledged...

Long before he became a Wall Street titan, Helen had housed him during his early university years.

Jude never forgot a debt, and he maintained an unspoken policy of ensuring she was quietly taken care of.

"Helen," Jude answered. "What do you need?"

"Jude, I’m so sorry to bother you," Helen’s voice trembled slightly through the receiver. "I know you’re running a massive empire now, but I didn’t know who else to call. It’s about your cousin, Clara."

Jude set his coffee cup down. "What happened to Clara?"

"She was just unfairly terminated from her junior brokerage position at Pinnacle Property Management," Helen explained, sounding deeply distressed. "She has been working eighty-hour weeks trying to secure her luxury real estate license, and her quarterly metrics were flawless. But they fired her this morning without any cause. She’s devastated. I thought maybe you could look into it? Or at least put in a word for her at a different firm?"

Jude’s instincts flared. "Where is Clara right now?"

"She drove back to the Pinnacle corporate office in the Sunstone District. She’s trying to demand a fair severance package from the Managing Director."

Jude’s lips curled into a slow smile. *The Sunstone District.*

"I will handle it, Helen. Tell Clara to stay exactly where she is," Jude commanded, hanging up the phone before his aunt could express her gratitude.

Pinnacle Property Management was the exact luxury brokerage firm contracted to oversee the leasing operations for his newly acquired asset, the Obsidian Tower!

***

Thirty minutes later, along the high-end streets of the Sunstone commercial center,...

The hypercar cut through the luxury traffic, screeching to a halt directly in front of the glass headquarters of Pinnacle Real Estate.

Jude stepped out of the cockpit, adjusting his suit jacket.

The interior of Pinnacle Real Estate was a bustling hive of luxury commerce, but Jude’s gaze immediately zeroed in on a commotion near the reception desk.

Standing in the center of the lobby was his cousin, Clara. Her shoulders were tense, and she was fighting back tears as she clutched a cardboard box containing her desk belongings.

Surrounding Clara was a clique of impeccably dressed, arrogant senior female brokers.

They were openly mocking her, uncaring that the rest of the lobby could hear their toxic harassment.

"I still don’t understand," Clara demanded. "My quarterly leasing metrics were entirely in the green! Why did the Managing Director terminate my contract without a severance package?"

The lead broker, a woman named Serena let out a loud laugh.

"Are you genuinely this naive, Clara? Or are you just playing stupid?" Serena sneered, inspecting her manicured nails. "You seriously thought you could bypass the internal hierarchy and survive?"

Clara gritted her teeth. "I didn’t bypass anything! I just processed a standard luxury lease for a client who walked through the door!"

"That client was a high-net-worth whale, Clara," Serena snapped, her eyes flashing with arrogance. "And that whale belonged to me. I had already claimed him in the internal registry. You had the audacity to poach my commission."

"He asked for me directly because you failed to return his calls for three days!" Clara shot back.

Serena stepped forward. "It doesn’t matter. I am the top producer at this firm. I generate more revenue in a month than you will see in a lifetime. When I told the Managing Director that you stole my client, he didn’t even hesitate. He fired you on the spot to keep me happy."

"You can’t just dictate who gets fired out of petty spite," Clara whispered, her spirit breaking.

"I absolutely can," Serena mocked, a playful smile on her face. "I hold the exclusive leasing rights to the best inventory in the Sunstone District. I manage the penthouses, the corporate suites, and the sovereign estates. The Managing Director worships my portfolio. You, on the other hand, have zero high-end inventory, and no strength."

Serena crossed her arms, looking down her nose at the junior broker. "If you offend the queen of the firm, you obediently pack your bags and get out. You have no right to exist in the luxury market."

The other senior brokers laughed.

Clara’s shoulders slumped. She realized with crushing clarity that she was entirely outgunned.

Wiping a frustrated tear from her eye, Clara turned to leave the lobby.

However, she froze after taking exactly two steps. Standing barely a few feet away was the tailored silhouette of her cousin, Jude Lawson.

"Jude?" Clara gasped, her eyes widening in sheer mortification.

She had heard the extravagant rumors from her mother regarding Jude’s recent ascent into the upper echelons of Wall Street.

Clara felt a wave of shame wash over her.

The last thing she wanted was for her successful cousin to witness the lowest, most humiliating moment of her career.

Jude stepped forward. "Clara. Explain to me exactly what is happening here."

Clara forced a strained smile, trying to downplay the situation. "It’s nothing, Jude, really. I just had a minor disagreement with management, so I’m resigning. I’ll just polish up my resume and submit it to one of the competing luxury brokerages downtown. Don’t worry about me."

Before Jude could even respond, Serena’s voice sliced through the lobby like a scalpel.

"Are you truly that delusional, Clara?" Serena sneered. "You think you can just waltz into a competing firm after offending me? Let me make something clear: you are blacklisted."