Chapter 7 - The Prisoner of ConscienceThree months passed.
Inside the cold, sterile walls of the state penitentiary, Richard Vance sat in a orange jumpsuit, staring at his reflection in the plexiglass divider. He had lost thirty pounds. His hair had turned completely silver, and his hands trembled constantly.
Without his wealth, his expensive suits, or his corporate empire, he was just a broken old man.
Every night, when the cell block went dark, the sound of his own hand slapping Emily echoed in his ears. The image of her tear-streaked face haunted his every waking thought. He didn't care if he spent the rest of his life in prison. He only cared that Emily was safe.
His court-appointed attorney, a young man named David, sat down across from him, holding a thick file.
"How is she, David?" Richard asked immediately, his voice hoarse. "Did you find out where Marcus took her?"
David looked down at his papers, exhaling slowly. "Mr. Vance... Marcus Sterling hasn't harmed her. In fact, he placed her in the top private boarding school in Upstate New York. She has a full-time nanny, a private tutor, and the best security money can buy."
Richard blinked, stunned. "Why? Why would he take care of the daughter of the man he hates?"
"Because Marcus isn't who you think he is," David said quietly. He pulled a yellowed, vintage photograph from the file and slid it across the table.
Richard picked up the photo. It showed two men standing in front of the burned ruins of the Vance & Sterling building twenty-five years ago. One was a younger Richard, his arms heavily bandaged with severe burns. The other was a firefighter holding a small, rescued infant wrapped in a blanket.
"The fire wasn't arson, Mr. Vance," David explained. "We recovered the original, unredacted arson report from 1999. Arthur Sterling set the fire himself to commit insurance fraud because the company was broke. You tried to pull him out, which is how you got those third-degree burns."
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Richard’s breath hitched. "Arthur... set it?"
"Yes," David continued. "And Marcus knew it. But Marcus spent years believing a twisted version of the story fed to him by his bitter mother. However, three days ago, Marcus found Arthur's real diary locked in a safe deposit box."
