Chapter 4 - The Broadcast Backlash
The living room was suffocatingly hot. Marcus slammed the front door shut, throwing the deadbolt and pulling the heavy blinds down over the windows. On the television screen, a news anchor was replaying the footage of Leo shouting on the lawn just seconds ago.
"That was reckless, Leo!" Marcus shouted, pacing the length of the worn rug. "You just painted a massive target on your own back. You named a district attorney on live television without a shred of proof!"
"It's true!" Leo fired back, standing his ground near the sofa. "Mom told me stories when I was little about a bad man in a suit who tried to ruin her life before we moved here. His name was Arthur Sterling. He’s the new D.A. handling her case!"
Marcus stopped pacing. He stared at his nephew, the color draining entirely from his face. "How... how do you know that name?"
"She kept a box in the attic," Leo said, his voice dropping to a fierce whisper. "She thought I was asleep, but I saw her crying over old newspaper clippings last month. Arthur Sterling swore he’d put her behind bars one day, no matter how long it took."
Marcus rubbed his temples, looking genuinely terrified now. "Leo, listen to me very carefully. Arthur Sterling isn't just a lawyer. He’s running for state senate. If you publicly accuse him of framing your mother on national television, he won't just ignore it. He will crush us."
Before Leo could answer, a loud crash echoed from the front porch. Something heavy hit the living room window, cracking the glass in a spiderweb pattern. Marcus rushed to the window, peering through a slat in the blinds. A brick lay on the porch floor, wrapped in a handwritten note.
Marcus opened the front door just a crack, retrieved the note, and brought it inside. His hands shook as he unfolded the piece of cheap notebook paper.
"What does it say?" Leo asked, stepping closer.
May you like
Marcus looked up, horror etched into every line of his face. "It’s not from a supporter, Leo. It’s a warning. It says: Drop the investigation into Sterling, or the boy is next."
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