Chapter 1: Night of Ghosts in Manhattan

The penthouse on the 90th floor of Sterling Tower stood tall in the heart of Manhattan, New York, but inside, it was as silent as a tomb. The floor-to-ceiling windows reflected the vibrant blue and red lights of Times Square below, but that luxury seemed entirely disconnected from the thick, heavy atmosphere inside Arthur Sterling’s office.

Arthur Sterling, the billionaire dubbed the “Wizard of Biotech,” sat in a high-end leather wheelchair. His face was gaunt, his skin as pale as wax, and his eyes were sunken pits of exhaustion behind an oxygen mask. The ventilator hissed in a steady, cold rhythm.

Facing him were his two children: Julian and Clara.

Julian Sterling, 32, wore an expensive suit, but his eyes were bloodshot and his hands trembled uncontrollably. He was a secret gambling addict who had burned through tens of millions of dollars in the casinos of Macau and Las Vegas. Now, he owed New York syndicates a sum large enough to make him “disappear” forever if he didn’t pay before dawn.

Clara Sterling, 28, was a complete contrast. She was her father’s private physician, always dressed in a pristine white lab coat, her blonde hair tied back, her expression gentle and devoted. She was the one who had cared for Arthur over the past two years as a terminal cancer ravaged his body.

Chapter 2: The Game of Ruthlessness

Arthur signaled for Clara to remove his oxygen mask. He coughed violently, a streak of bright red blood staining his silk handkerchief.

“I don’t have much time,” Arthur wheezed, his voice dry like falling leaves. “My lawyer, Mr. Henderson, is waiting in the next room with my final will. Two billion dollars, the entire Sterling Biotech empire… it will all go to a single person.”

Julian held his breath, his chest heaving. “Father… who is it?”

Arthur slowly pointed to a crystal glass on the table containing an amber liquid that looked like fine Scotch.

“My life was built on ruthlessness and cold decisions. I will not hand this empire to a weakling,” Arthur said, his eyes piercing his children. “That glass contains a compound formulated by our own company. Odorless, tasteless, it causes instant cardiac arrest without leaving a trace for an autopsy. Whichever one of you has the courage to help me end this pain right now proves they have the iron will to rule Sterling Biotech.”

The room fell into a haunting silence. The ticking of the wall clock felt like a hammer hitting Julian’s heart.

Chapter 3: The Mask Falls

Julian took a step back, his face distorted with horror. “You’re insane, Father! You’re asking us to become murderers right here, right now?”

However, Julian’s eyes never left the glass. He was calculating. If the old man died tonight, his debts would be wiped clean. But what if he got caught? No, his father said it left no trace.

Just as Julian prepared to step forward, Clara moved first. Her gentle facade vanished, replaced by a terrifying calmness. She blocked her brother’s path.

“You can’t do it, Julian,” Clara said, her voice cold as ice. “You’re just a coward hiding behind playing cards. You don’t have the spine to grasp your own destiny.”

“Clara? What the hell are you talking about?” Julian stammered.

Clara turned to her father, her hand steady as she reached for the glass. “You’re right, Father. This world is a jungle, and only predators deserve to survive. You have suffered for far too long. I will help you find peace, and I will be the one to take Sterling Biotech global.”

Clara brought the glass to Arthur’s lips. Julian stood frozen, breathing heavily—torn between disgust and the hope for his father’s death. Arthur smiled, a cryptic, knowing smile, and drained the glass in one gulp.

Chapter 4: The Terrifying Twist

Arthur slumped over. The silk handkerchief slipped from his lifeless hands. The heart monitor beside him let out a long, piercing beep.

Clara did not cry. She set the glass down and pulled out her phone to dial Henderson. “It’s done. You can come in.”

The heavy oak doors swung open. But it wasn’t just Mr. Henderson. Behind him were four NYPD detectives with shimmering badges and drawn sidearms.

“Clara Sterling, you are under arrest for attempted murder in the first degree,” the lead detective announced.

Clara gave a faint, mocking smile and pointed to a folder on the table. “You’re mistaken. This is a voluntary will signed by my father. He chose to go this way. I was merely exercising his right to assisted suicide!”

Lawyer Henderson looked at her with pity. He slowly picked up the folder. “Ms. Clara, this is not a will. This is a staged legal agreement for a secret recording. And most importantly…”

Henderson turned toward the wheelchair. Arthur Sterling suddenly sat up, ripping the sensors off his body. He stood straight, commanding the room like a king, showing no sign of a dying man.

Chapter 5: The Bitter Truth

Clara and Julian were paralyzed with shock. Everything had been a perfectly orchestrated play. The liquid in the glass was merely apple juice mixed with a mild sedative.

“I was never sick, Clara,” Arthur said, his voice booming through the room, stripped of the earlier wheeze. “The entire medical record, the vomiting blood… it was all created by Sterling Biotech’s makeup and special effects department.”

He walked up to Clara, who was shaking with disbelief. “I had hoped that you—the daughter who always spoke of medical ethics—would be the one to stop Julian. But as it turns out, you are more cold-blooded than your brother. You didn’t want to save me; you only wanted my chair.”

Arthur turned to Julian. “And you, Julian. You stood by and watched your sister kill your father just so you could pay off your debts. Neither of you passed my final test.”

Julian collapsed, wailing for mercy. Clara just stood there, her eyes hollow. Everything she had built—the two years of fake devotion—had turned to ash in an instant.

Epilogue: The Poorest Man on the Peak

The police led Clara away. Julian was dragged out of the building by security, his inheritance permanently revoked.

Arthur Sterling stood alone in his vast office. He looked out the window at New York City, still shimmering with lights—vibrant and heartless. He had two billion dollars, a world-leading scientific empire, but in this massive penthouse, there wasn’t a single soul left to call his own.

He looked at the empty crystal glass on the table. In the world of power, he had won. But in the world of humanity, he realized he was the most pathetic failure of all.

The lights in the penthouse flickered out, leaving a solitary silhouette against the darkness of Manhattan.