“Who killed your father, you ask?” Leonard repeated after Michael and then turned back to the window, the city lights reflecting in his eyes.

“That,” he said softly, “I can’t help you with. But what I can help you with is what comes next, a job… or something more.”

Michael looked like he was angry while looking at his back. “That's not what I asked?”

Leonard turned to face him again. “But that’s exactly what I want to give you,” he said.

He took a deep breath before continuing. “Tell me, Michael… can you fight? Do you have anything? And even if your father was killed, what can you possibly do about it? You have a little sister. My advice, man up and take care of her.”

Michael lowered his voice. “So you’re saying I’m weak. That even if I find out who killed my father, I can’t do anything about it?”

Leonard said nothing.

Michael stared at him for a moment, then asked, “What was that offer you mentioned again?”

Leonard’s lips curved slightly. “Good. Now we’re talking. Let’s be real, shall we? I’m giving you two options. You choose one, a job or mentorship.”

Michael stayed quiet for a while, looked around the office before looking back at him. “What do you mean?”

Leonard leaned forward slightly. “Do you want a job… or do you want to understand how money really works?”

Michael frowned. “What’s the difference?”

“A job gives you a salary,” Leonard said. “Enough to survive. Maybe even enough to look good. But real wealth? That’s about control and power.”

He paused and watched Michael closely. “Have you ever wondered why a few companies own almost everything we buy, watch, or use? Or why does the news always sound the same? That’s not luck, it’s control.”

Michael gave a small, uneasy laugh. “You sound like my old neighbor. He’s obsessed with conspiracy theories.”

Leonard smiled too but faintly. “Then maybe he’s one of the few paying attention. Money doesn’t move freely, Michael, it’s directed. Every crisis, every surge, each reform… it always benefits the same people.”

Michael leaned forward, curious now despite himself.

“When someone suddenly gets rich,” Leonard continued, “he either inherited access… or broke the rules that keep everyone else poor.”

Michael squinted slightly. “And what about you?”

Leonard’s smile faded. “I didn't inherit mine, I learned early that the system isn’t broken, it’s built that way. Your father… he tried to change that.”

Michael’s chest tightened; he was confused and frowned. “Are you saying that’s why he died?”

Leonard looked at him for a long moment but said nothing.

Then, in a quieter tone, he said, “You have two choices.”

He raised a finger. “First, work for me. High pay, no questions asked. You start immediately.”

Then another. “Second, I mentor you. I show you how the real world works. How influence flows. How the powerful stay in control. But it won’t be easy. It’ll take your time… and maybe your peace.”

Michael studied him carefully. “And why should I trust you?”

Leonard smirked. “Because I haven’t given you a reason not to, yet.”

Michael let out a shaky breath. “You talk like someone who’s seen too much.”

“And you talk like someone who still believes the world is fair,” Leonard said softly.

Both of them remained quiet until Michael swallowed hard. “What would my father have done?”

Leonard’s eyes softened. “He tried to walk both paths. But the system doesn’t forgive that.”

Michael’s hands tightened into fists.

Leonard stepped closer. “So, Michael… what’s it going to be? Comfort, or clarity?”

Michael still said nothing, but stared at him.

“Let me be honest,” Leonard continued. “If you take the job, you’ll be paid well. No questions asked. But you’ll be kept in the dark, comfortable, yet controlled. You’ll survive… but that’s all.”

“But if you choose the mentorship,” he continued, “everything changes. You’ll see things you can’t unsee. Hear truths that will contradict every lie you’ve believed. You’ll make choices that won’t let you sleep. And if you ever slip, if you draw too much attention, the system will eat you alive.”

He faced him again. “There’s no third option. No going back to normal.”

The room went quiet, as his words hung in the air.

Michael didn’t reply right away. He leaned back in the chair and kept his eyes fixed on the painting on the wall. His chest felt tight.

He wanted to say yes, he almost did, but something inside him held back.

“I need to think,” he said at last.

Leonard nodded, almost as if he’d expected that answer. “Good. That means you’re not a fool.”

Michael raised an eyebrow.

“Most people jump at the first big offer,” Leonard said, walking back to his desk. “They never stop to ask why they were chosen. Take the evening. Think. But remember…”

He leaned forward slightly.

“Once you open this door, you can’t unsee what’s behind it. Knowing changes you, forever.”

Michael nodded slowly. “Then I’ll think carefully.”

“I bet you would. Meet my secretary if you choose comfort.” Then he reached for a white card across the table and handed it to Michael. It had only one word embossed in gold: CRIBBAGE.

“Come here,” Leonard said. “If you choose clarity.”

*****

Outside, the city was louder than usual, horns blaring, engines humming, people shouting. Michael drifted through the streets on autopilot, half lost in thought.

By the time he reached his home, the sun was already setting.

Inside, Ciara sat at the table, sketching on her tablet with earbuds in. Vivian was beside her, reading a textbook with her glasses halfway down her nose.

They both looked up as he walked in.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” Vivian said.

Michael sighed, tossed his keys onto the counter, and dropped onto the couch. “Close. Maybe worse.”

Ciara pulled out one earbud. “What happened?”

He stared at the ceiling for a moment before replying. “I met someone today. He said he knew Dad.”

That got their attention.

Vivian closed her book. “What do you mean?”

“He offered me a job… sort of.”

Ciara frowned. “Sort of?”

Michael rubbed his face. “It wasn’t a normal offer. He didn’t even say what the job was. Just talked about understanding how money really works, power, influence, and control. Blah. Blah.”

Ciara gave him a wary look. “That sounds shady.”

“I thought so too,” Michael said. “But he wasn’t some random guy. His office was top-notch, his people treated him like a god, like someone who runs things from behind the scenes. And he knew things about Dad… things I’ve never heard before.”

Vivian paced slowly. “So what do you think?”

“I don’t know,” Michael admitted. “Part of me wants to just take a regular job and stay out of all this. But another part of me, the curious part, feels like he showed me something real. Like there’s more to this world than I’ve been told.”

“Sounds like you already made up your mind,” Vivian said quietly.

“I’m not sure,” he replied. “Not yet.”

Vivian crossed her arms. “If you go back, don’t go alone. People like that know how to use grief and curiosity to get control. Just… be careful, okay? Whatever you decide, we’ve got your back.”

“Always,” Ciara added with a faint smile.

Michael nodded, grateful.

That night, sleep refused to come.

Leonard’s words echoed in his head:

“Every crisis, every surge, each reform… it all circles back to the same hands.”

His mind was torn in three directions, walk away and forget it all, accept the job, or take the mentorship. But deep down, he knew Leonard knew something about his father’s death. Maybe Leonard wasn’t the one responsible, but he definitely knew something, and Michael needed to find out what it was.

By morning, he already knew what he had to do.

*****

The Cribbage wasn’t on Google Maps.

Not the house. Not even the street.

Michael had to rely on the street number written on the card Leonard gave him. When he finally saw the old iron gate and the small decent house behind it, he knew he was in the right place.

He hesitated for a moment at the entrance.

Then he pushed the gate open and stepped inside.

The compound was quiet, almost too quiet. No guards, no reception, no cameras in sight. Just the sound of his own footsteps on the stone path.

He reached the main door, pushed it open, and stepped in.

Inside, the place looked like a mix between an old library and a gentleman’s lounge, with leather chairs and aged books.

Leonard Hunter sat behind a chessboard with his eyes on the pieces.

“Welcome back,” he said calmly, without even looking up.

“I’m in,” Michael said. “Let’s try clarity.”

Leonard smiled faintly and moved a knight on the board. “Good.”

He gestured toward the chair across from him. “Then let’s begin.”

On the table between them was a small white envelope.

“Your first test,” Leonard said.

Michael glanced at it. It was plain, unsealed, and the only thing written on it was his name, Michael Cross, in neat blue ink.

He picked it up and turned it over. It was empty.

He looked up. “It’s blank.”

Leonard poured himself a small drink and smiled. “Exactly.”

“I thought you said this was a test.”

“It is,” Leonard replied. “Just not the kind you expected.”

He leaned back and studied Michael for a moment. “Tell me something, Michael, what is money?”

Michael hesitated. “Well… Its value. A medium of exchange. What people use to buy things.”

Leonard nodded slowly. “That’s the textbook answer. It explains what money does, not what it is.”

Michael frowned. “Isn’t that the same thing?”

“Not even close.”

Leonard stood and walked to a shelf lined with old books, coins, and strange ornaments. He picked up a small string of cowries, tied together with worn leather.

“Once upon a time,” he said, turning it over in his hand, “this was money. People killed for it. Traded their daughters for it. Built kingdoms with it.”

He tossed the cowries to Michael, who caught them awkwardly.

“Your first lesson,” Leonard said, “isn’t about hacking or breaking systems. It’s about understanding the system you’re already in. Money isn’t paper or numbers in your bank account.”

He paused, letting the words sink in.

“It’s a belief. That’s all it’s ever been.”

Michael looked down at the cowries. “So what, you’re going to teach me economics?”

Leonard chuckled. “Not economics, boy. Survival. Freedom.”

He leaned forward. “Your test is simple: listen. Don’t argue. Don’t rush to prove you’re right. Just listen. And when the lessons are done… decide who you want to become.”

Michael nodded slowly. “Alright. I’ll listen.”

Leonard smiled. “Good. Lesson one, Trade by Barter. That’s where it all began.”