Chapter 680 - 319: Sudden Incident
Washington D.C., 1789 Restaurant, next to Georgetown University.
Ten minutes past noon.
Pushing open the door to the private room, Sterling found George Vance already seated inside.
Sterling had arrived a deliberate ten minutes late. He wore a finely tailored dark blue suit with a silk handkerchief tucked into his breast pocket, a calm smile gracing his face.
In contrast to Sterling’s confident air, Vance looked somewhat haggard.
The bags under his eyes were deep, the result of several consecutive sleepless nights spent on public relations.
Though he still wore an expensive, custom-made suit, the anxiety radiating from him was like a damp shirt he couldn’t take off.
"Good afternoon, George."
Sterling pulled out a chair and sat down, casually picking up the menu.
"The crab cakes here are good. Would you like to order some?"
Vance didn’t answer.
In front of him sat a lone glass of soda water, the ice cubes half-melted.
"Cut the pleasantries, Sterling."
Vance’s voice was a little hoarse.
𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂
"You know why I’m here."
"Of course." Sterling put down the menu and nodded to the waiter, signaling for a glass of bourbon.
"It’s because you lost."
Sterling looked at Vance, a hint of mockery in his eyes.
"By now, all of Washington must know what the ’solid’ in your ’solid industry’ really stands for."
"Pfizer’s stock is down fifteen percent, United Health’s market cap has evaporated by thirty billion, and our energy stocks?"
Sterling swirled the drink in his glass.
"Up eight percent."
This was the source of Sterling’s confidence.
For the past few decades, the energy industry had been beaten down by pharmaceutical and tech giants.
In Washington, they were seen as obsolete dinosaurs, scorned by environmentalists and marginalized by Wall Street.
But now, the tables had turned.
Because they had found a proxy who actually dared to stand up and flip the table on the pharmaceutical companies.
Watching those normally high-and-mighty pharma execs tremble in the shadows was more satisfying than making hundreds of millions of USD.
"You’re enjoying this."
Vance watched Sterling coldly.
"But have you forgotten? The rules of Wall Street don’t just favor energy. The pharmaceutical industry’s cash flow is far more stable than yours."
"If we wanted, we could contact the rating agencies at any time and downgrade the credit of your highly leveraged power plants. We could tighten your loan interest rates and double your financing costs next quarter."
"These are standard operations in the financial market."
"Then why don’t you do it?"
Sterling took a sip of his drink and snorted contemptuously.
"George, do you think you’re the only ones with the banks on speed dial? If you want to start a war on Wall Street, we have more than enough chips to play."
"I want to hear something new. Do you have any countermeasures that are unique to the pharmaceutical industry?"
Sterling leaned forward, his tone full of provocation.
"For example, why don’t you just cut off the drug supply to all energy company employees and their families? That’s the real pressure point, isn’t it?"
Vance opened his mouth, but the threat he had prepared caught in his throat.
They had, in fact, considered this kind of targeted countermeasure.
But the reality was harsh.
The pharmaceutical giants didn’t deal directly with end consumers. They sold drugs to large wholesalers, who then distributed them to tens of thousands of pharmacies across All of America.
To precisely prevent a worker at a specific energy company from buying blood pressure medication, they would need pharmacy benefit managers and pharmacies to open up all their backend data for real-time personal identification and cross-referencing.
This was technically feasible, but politically impossible.
The energy giants’ ability to mobilize was too strong.
Once this precision targeting was discovered, such blatant political persecution would instantly ignite a firestorm of public opinion across the United States.
Right now, the energy companies at least had a plausible excuse.
They claimed that with factories in Pennsylvania returning to full operation, the grid was overloaded, forcing them to cut back on energy transmission to the east.
It was an administrative pretext.
The truth didn’t matter. What mattered was maintaining appearances.
I know that you know that I know, but you have to pretend that I don’t know that you know that I know.
This complicated tongue twister is the essence of politics.
It provides everyone with a gray area for maneuvering, a way to avoid a complete and utter fallout.
The pharmaceutical companies’ current supply cuts to Pittsburgh were already putting immense pressure on Washington’s politicians.
If they went a step further and rationed prescription drugs for specific professional groups, it would be tantamount to abandoning all their excuses and putting a noose around their own necks.
Vance realized he wasn’t going to win this war of words.
He shut his mouth and stared coldly at Sterling.
"You’re very confident, Sterling. But have you ever thought about what kind of monster you’re nurturing?"
Vance’s voice was very low.
"Leo Wallace is a madman. He has no bottom line, no rules. Today, he’ll have you cut my power over a few bottles of medicine. Tomorrow, he might blow up your oil pipeline for some bullshit environmental reason."
"Do you think he’s your ally? No, he’s just a blade. Right now it’s pointed at me, but in the next second, it’ll be pointed at you."
"We have to get rid of him."
A vicious glint appeared in Vance’s eyes.
"Once he’s gone, Pennsylvania will go back to the way it should be."
Sterling listened to Vance and shook his head.
"George, you’re still looking at this in black and white."
"Whether he’s a madman or not is irrelevant. What’s important is whether he can bring me returns."
"Did you call me here just to feed me this nonsense?"
Vance decided to stop beating around the bush. He drained the glass of ice water in front of him. A chill traveled down his esophagus, but it couldn’t quell the fire in his heart.
"Let’s be frank, Sterling."
"The core conflict between us, when you get down to it, is Leo Wallace himself."
Vance laced his fingers and placed his hands on the table—a highly aggressive negotiating posture.
"The pharmaceutical industry’s demand is simple right now. We need the Medicine Benefits Transparency and Fairness Bill repealed."
"And you don’t give a damn about some pitiful healthcare costs. What you really care about is whether Leo’s big moves in Pennsylvania will interfere with your energy strategy."
Vance stared into Sterling’s eyes, trying to find a glimmer of agreement.
"What if we offered a solution? One that could get rid of Leo completely, while guaranteeing your interests in Pennsylvania remain unharmed?"
Vance continued, "As long as Leo disappears—whether it’s a political death or a physical one. Whoever takes his place will have to accept all your terms to stabilize the situation, and we can use all our resources in Washington to guarantee it."
The private room fell silent for a moment.
Sterling looked at Vance.
He suddenly let out a laugh.
"George, you’re trying to trade me for something I already have."
Sterling leaned back, stretching his body.
"Leo is on our side right now. He’s approving land for me, giving me tax exemptions, and he’s about to hand over the entire state’s computing center to me. And now you’re telling me you want to replace him with some unknown and have me gamble on whether the new guy will be obedient?"
"That doesn’t make business sense."
Sterling shook his head.
"Besides, you still don’t understand the situation."
He pointed to the calendar on the wall.
"This is an election year."
"Think again. Why are we doing this? And what have you all been doing?"
Vance froze.
Election year.
The words exploded in his mind.
He looked at Sterling’s faint, unreadable smile, his mind racing to piece together all the fragments of information.
The energy industry was traditionally a Republican Party stronghold and one of its biggest donors.
They despised environmental regulations, hated carbon taxes, and detested the Democratic Party’s entire green agenda.
And the pharmaceutical industry...
Vance’s heart sank.
The pharmaceutical industry had been hedging its bets. To protect the profits they’d gained since the healthcare reforms, their political donations in recent years had increasingly favored the Democratic Party.
They had tried to find a balance between the two parties, even backstabbing their traditional conservative allies on certain key issues.
The Republican Party was using the energy companies to punish the pharmaceutical industry for its disloyalty.
They were also sending a message to Washington, to all the wavering capital groups, about who the real cornerstone was—and who had the power to create real chaos in the swing states.
Leo Wallace, the Democratic Mayor, was actually a tool for the Republican Party to fracture the Democratic base.
Vance understood everything.
This was partisan warfare.
Sterling watched Vance’s expression of sudden realization and nodded in satisfaction.
"Looks like you get it now."
"So, don’t mention any more foolishness about getting rid of Leo. He’s our most useful pawn right now."
Vance’s mind started racing.
If this was true, then Leo Wallace’s position became very intriguing.
A Democratic Mayor, launching a reform targeting pharmaceutical companies, backed by Republican donors.
What was he really after?
Was he really just doing it for that so-called Mutual Aid Alliance? For the poor?
’For the people?’
Vance scoffed inwardly.
He didn’t believe it.
In this circle, no one would offend real capital for a bunch of people who could do nothing but vote.
Leo must have another motive.
Perhaps he was waiting for the highest bidder.
He was preparing to package up the hundreds of thousands of votes in his hand and sell them to the Republican Party.
Only that could explain why Sterling was standing so firmly behind him.
Vance stood up.
"I understand."
Vance said.
"Since you’re dead set on protecting him, I won’t waste any more of my time here."
"Where are you going?" Sterling asked.
"To Pittsburgh."
Vance walked toward the door.
"I’m going to meet him myself."
"If he really wants to be the Republican Party’s inside man, then we in the pharmaceutical industry aren’t unwilling to talk."
He was no longer thinking about murder.
He just wanted to figure one thing out now: what shade of Demon, exactly, was Leo Wallace?
Just then, both of their phones buzzed simultaneously.
Sterling pulled out his phone, and Vance took out his as well.
On the screen was a single line of bold, black text.
[BREAKING: Pittsburgh Mayor Leo Wallace shot while inspecting a community pharmacy]