Chapter 2: Patience Above All, Or Else

You take a deep breath, lifting your head from those dusty memories. So the real struggle for the estate starts here. You steel yourself, ready to make your move, only to notice a framed quote hanging in the room.

Four big words: “Patience Above All.”

You tilt your head. What’s this supposed to mean?

A memory pops up. In it, you’re still young, passionate—acting on impulse, loving fiercely, cutting people off without a second thought when the love’s gone. The Mayor said you were “moody and unpredictable”—and those four words were forever recorded in your file.

The kind of label that sticks, whispered at family gatherings, brought up in performance reviews, the scarlet letter of the emotionally volatile.

Can someone moody and unpredictable ever be the heir?

Obviously not!

You’re dumbfounded.

Damn, the estate struggle hasn’t even started and I’m already out of the running?

Wait—if I’m really out, how come I still get to interrogate Carl Zimmerman?

Only now do you realize: the original host has been playing it safe for ten years. That “Patience Above All” quote’s been hanging up for years. He’s studied mindfulness, even had someone light candles for him at church, and all his friends are high-minded philosophers and therapists. He’s gone from hothead to total recluse.

You exhale. Not the best start, but if you play it step by step, you can still turn things around.

The housekeeper outside, seeing you silent for so long, doesn’t dare come in. Just then, your thirteenth brother bursts in, anxious: “Harrison, you’re still not ready?”

You clear your throat, straighten your tie, and calmly push open the door—stepping into the power struggle of the nine heirs. Then you step right back. With Thirteenth Brother in tow. Yeah, that went well.

Carl Zimmerman’s case needs careful planning.

If you’re going to play family intrigue, besides planting spies and setting traps, the key is reading people—especially your father. You ask Thirteenth Brother, “Why do you think Dad wants us to interrogate Carl Zimmerman?”

Thirteenth Brother blurts out, “Harrison, you still have time to think about that? The Mayor’s son is out, and we used to be close to him—we need to distance ourselves, fast!”

You start to get it. The Mayor gave you the case to test your loyalty.

Thirteenth Brother adds, “Come on, let’s go! The youngest councilman is already in charge of the Finance Office. He’s ruthless—he even arrested Larry Pratt, who’s married to the Mayor’s son’s former nanny. That’s some connection, and he just took him down. If you don’t act fast with Carl Zimmerman, when Dad gets back, how will you explain yourself?”

You look at Thirteenth Brother, touched by his concern. You smile, “Don’t worry, I’ve got this.”