"That depends," Edmund said softly. "On how badly you want to survive."
On the other end of the line, Margaret Linton did not answer immediately. Edmund could hear faint city noise behind her, the muted hum of a high floor office, the kind that overlooks London and makes people feel untouchable until the ground vanishes beneath them.
Finally, her voice returned, controlled but tight.
"I do not appreciate theatrics, Mr Ashcroft."
Edmund kept his tone even.
"Good. Then we can speak plainly."
A pause.
"How did you get this number," she asked.
Edmund glanced at the interface hovering near his vision.
[ Exposure Risk Rising ]
[ Recommend Indirection ]
He answered without hesitation.
"A mutual acquaintance believes you need someone who can act quickly without attracting attention."
"You mean without creating paperwork," Margaret said.
"I mean without creating a trail," Edmund replied.
Silence again. He could almost feel her recalculating. People like Margaret Linton were trained to never sound desperate. They believed desperation was a scent predators could detect.
Edmund decided to help her retain dignity.
"Tell me what you want," he said.
"I want stability," she replied instantly. "I want time."
Edmund nodded slightly as if she could see him.
"How much time."
Margaret's voice lowered.
"Twelve weeks."
Edmund did the math in his head. Twelve weeks was long enough to restructure, refinance, and reposition. It was also long enough for predators to tighten their net if they sensed weakness.
"Why twelve."
"Because my heritage fund has a quarterly liquidity covenant," she said, and there was the faintest crack in her composure. "If I breach it, I trigger cross default clauses across three facilities. Total exposure is above one hundred million."
Edmund's eyes narrowed.
"Tell me the exact numbers."
Margaret hesitated, then spoke carefully.
"Facility one is a revolving credit line. Thirty five million. Facility two is a bridge loan. Forty eight million. Facility three is secured against three legacy properties. Twenty seven million. Total one hundred and ten million."
Edmund did not react.
"What is your liquid buffer today."
"Six point two million," she admitted.
Edmund let the silence hang long enough for the truth to sink in.
"So you are breathing through a straw," he said. "And someone is about to put a hand over the end."
Margaret's voice sharpened.
"That is why I am calling you."
Edmund tapped his fingers once on the desk.
"I can buy you twelve weeks," he said. "But not for free."
"What do you want," she asked.
This time the question carried less pride and more calculation.
Edmund looked at the system.
[ Covenant Opportunity Imminent ]
[ Suggested Covenant Type Support Covenant Tier Minor To Major ]
[ Recommended Terms Convert Liquidity Support Into Influence Equity And Information ]
He spoke slowly, choosing words like locks.
"I want three things."
Margaret did not interrupt.
"First," Edmund continued, "you will sign a private mandate naming Ashcroft and Vale Consulting as your restructuring advisor for ninety days. Fee one hundred and twenty thousand paid upfront."
Margaret exhaled sharply.
"That is absurd. I do not pay upfront for advice."
Edmund kept his voice calm.
"You will. Because what I am selling is not advice. It is speed."
Silence returned.
He continued.
"Second, you will grant me a success fee. One percent of assets preserved above a threshold."
Margaret's voice rose.
"One percent of three hundred million is three million."
Edmund corrected her.
"Not of three hundred. Of what I preserve above a threshold. If I stabilize you at three hundred and twenty million net asset value, and the threshold is three hundred million, the preserved amount above threshold is twenty million. One percent is two hundred thousand."
Margaret's breathing steadied slightly.
"That is more reasonable," she said cautiously.
Edmund did not smile.
"Third, you will provide me access to your counterparty list," he said. "Your lenders, your legal counsel, your board minutes from the last ninety days, and every communication you have received from Harrington affiliated entities."
Margaret's voice hardened instantly.
"That is confidential."
Edmund leaned forward.
"So is the truth," he replied. "And you do not get to survive by protecting secrets that are killing you."
She did not respond for a few seconds.
Then she asked, quieter.
"How do you know Harrington is involved."
Edmund looked at the interface again.
[ Warning Exposure Spike Potential ]
[ Recommend Controlled Reveal ]
He gave her just enough.
"Because the same kind of pressure you are feeling does not happen naturally," he said. "Someone is guiding it."
Margaret's voice dropped.
"If you are wrong, you are asking me to hand you the keys to my entire operation."
"And if I am right," Edmund replied, "you are asking me to fight a war on your behalf while blind."
Another pause.
Margaret's next words came slowly.
"If I agree, how do you buy me time. Specifically."
Edmund had been waiting for that.
"Now we speak numbers," he said.
He opened the ledger on his desk, though he did not need it. The act grounded him.
"I will provide you a liquidity bridge," he said. "Two million pounds within forty eight hours. Another three million within ten days if required."
Margaret's voice sharpened.
"Five million does not solve one hundred and ten million."
"It prevents breach," Edmund answered. "It stops panic. Panic is what triggers the chain reaction. The breach is what your enemies want."
Margaret hesitated.
"And where does five million come from."
Edmund kept his answer simple.
"A financing vehicle."
He did not mention the Covenant Credit. He did not mention the system. He did not mention the intelligence that was calculating her heartbeat.
Margaret let out a slow breath.
"You are either reckless," she said, "or you are certain."
Edmund's gaze hardened.
"I do not do reckless anymore."
The system pulsed once, and a new pane appeared.
[ Covenant Drafting Available ]
[ Cost Authority Strain High ]
[ Current Authority Level 1 Insufficient For Major Covenant ]
[ Suggest Create Minor Covenant With Escalation Clause ]
Edmund frowned slightly.
"You have limits," he murmured under his breath.
Margaret heard the shift in his voice.
"What did you say."
"Nothing," Edmund replied smoothly. "Now listen carefully. We start with a limited covenant."
Margaret's voice was wary.
"Covenant."
"Yes," Edmund said. "A private agreement with consequences. If I deliver the bridge funds, you deliver what I requested. And you do not speak of me to Harrington or anyone aligned with them. Breach that, and you will be the first to fall."
Margaret's voice turned cold.
"Are you threatening me."
Edmund's tone remained quiet.
"I am warning you. Because the moment you leak, you become bait. And bait dies."
Margaret's breathing quickened, then steadied again.
"What do you need from me now."
"A meeting," Edmund said. "Tonight. Not in your office. Somewhere neutral."
Margaret hesitated.
"Where."
Edmund glanced at the system, and it offered a location.
[ Suggested Location The Lydford Room Private Dining Mayfair ]
[ Surveillance Risk Moderate ]
[ Harrington Asset Present One Observer ]
Edmund's eyes narrowed.
"There will be watchers."
The system added another line.
[ Opportunity Identify Observer And Plant False Signal ]
Edmund's pulse steadied.
He spoke into the phone.
"Mayfair," he said. "The Lydford Room. Eight thirty."
Margaret paused.
"You seem very sure of yourself for a man who has been absent for years."
Edmund smiled faintly.
"Absence creates safety," he replied. "And safety creates time."
She did not answer that.
"I will be there," she said.
The call ended.
Edmund remained still for a moment, then looked at the system.
"Show me the deal structure," he said.
The interface expanded.
Proposed Structure
Entity Ashcroft and Vale Consulting Ltd
Instrument Advisory Mandate And Private Liquidity Bridge
Upfront Fee £120,000
Bridge Funding £2,000,000 initial
Optional Tranche £3,000,000
Term Ninety Days
Success Fee One Percent Of NAV Above £300,000,000
Information Access Full lender and board communications
Silence Clause Absolute
Escalation Clause Converts Minor Covenant Into Major Covenant Upon Second Tranche Release
Edmund's jaw tightened.
"Major covenant requires higher authority," he said.
[ Correct ]
"So if I release the second tranche, you strain."
[ Correct ]
"Define strain."
The system responded in its calm voice.
[ Authority Strain Impacts Cognitive Load ]
[ Symptoms Insomnia Memory Fragmentation Emotional Flattening ]
Edmund stared.
"So I pay with my mind."
[ Power Requires Cost ]
He did not look away.
"And the AI. What about you. Do you have limits."
A brief pause.
[ My projections are bounded by available data ]
[ I cannot see absolutes ]
[ I cannot force outcomes ]
[ I cannot protect you from violence without preparation ]
Edmund's eyes narrowed.
"Violence."
[ Probability Black Ledger Circle employs coercive assets ]
The room felt colder.
"So this is not just paperwork."
[ Correct ]
Edmund closed the interface with a thought.
"Prepare me," he said.
The system responded.
[ Directive Engine Active ]
[ Preparation Step One Appear Harmless ]
[ Preparation Step Two Plant False Narrative ]
[ Preparation Step Three Acquire Basic Security ]
Edmund opened a drawer and pulled out a worn notebook. He began to write.
Not poems. Not dreams.
Numbers.
A plan.
If he could get the upfront fee, he had breathing room. If he could deliver the first tranche, he would anchor the covenant. If he could identify Harrington's observer, he could feed them a controlled lie.
He would not fight with fists.
He would fight with information.
Across the city, inside a sleek glass tower, Richard Harrington stood before a wall of screens.
His assistant placed a folder on the desk.
"We have movement," she said.
Richard did not look away from the city view.
"Explain."
"A call was placed from Margaret Linton," she said. "To an unknown number. The number belongs to a newly reactivated entity. Ashcroft and Vale Consulting Ltd."
Richard's fingers tightened slightly.
"Ashcroft."
He said the name like a curse.
"They are dead," his assistant said, but her voice lacked conviction now.
Richard turned slowly.
"Dead families do not reactivate companies," he replied.
He walked back to his desk.
"Who filed the reactivation."
"Digital signature. Verified. Edmund Ashcroft."
For the first time in years, Richard Harrington's composure cracked. Not fully. Just enough for something human to seep through.
Fear.
A small controlled fear, like a blade pressed gently against the throat.
"Confirm location," he said.
"We traced a reservation at The Lydford Room," the assistant replied. "Mayfair. Eight thirty."
Richard's eyes hardened.
"Send one observer," he said. "Not a team. If this is real, we do not spook him. We watch."
The assistant nodded and left.
Richard stared at the Ashcroft name on the report.
Quietly, he spoke to himself.
"Impossible."
But deep down, he already knew.
The Ashcrofts were not finished.
They had simply waited until the world stopped looking.
Back in Ravenshollow Square, Edmund placed the signet ring on his finger again and stood in front of the mirror in the dark hallway.
He adjusted his collar.
He looked like an ordinary young man.
Tired.
Unremarkable.
A man with nothing left.
Perfect.
The system pulsed.
[ Reminder Do Not Win Tonight ]
Edmund blinked.
"What."
[ You must not appear powerful ]
[ You must appear useful ]
Edmund's lips curved slightly.
"So I lose on purpose."
[ You trade ego for survival ]
He stepped toward the door.
As he did, one final line appeared.
[ Covenant Draft Ready ]
[ Signature Required In Person ]
Edmund opened the door and stepped into the rain.
Tonight, he would place his second chain.
And somewhere in Mayfair, a man who believed he had erased the Ashcrofts prepared to look directly at the ghost he created.
The clock was moving.
And Edmund Ashcroft was learning how to hold time by the throat.