CHAPTER 6 – ELI ENTERS THE SYSTEM
Eli woke up in a place that was not his apartment.
White walls.
No clock.
No sound except ventilation.
A woman stood near the door.
“You passed observation phase,” she said.
Eli sat up slowly. “Observation phase of what?”
“Behavioral calibration.”
“That doesn’t answer anything.”
“It’s not supposed to.”
She placed a folder on the table.
Inside were transcripts.
Bellwether.
Sienna Brooks.
Grant Vale.
Eli froze.
“You were there,” she said. “You saw everything. But more importantly—you noticed what others didn’t.”
Eli looked up.
“And if I refuse?”
The woman tilted her head slightly.
“You already agreed. When you accepted the envelope.”
Silence.
Then she added:
“People think wealth is inherited. It isn’t. It’s selected.”
May you like
A pause.
“And you’ve been selected.”
