American Horror Story, Starting from Falls Town

Chapter 322 is a suicide.
California, a military prison.

Dengdengdeng.

The rhythmic footsteps of high heels on the concrete floor carried far in the open space.

Finally, the owner of the high heels stopped at the entrance of a luxurious prison.

"Bartholomew, someone wants to see you."

The cell door opened, and a middle-aged woman, probably in her forties or fifties, walked in. She looked shrewd, capable, and imposing.

Bartholomew's face showed shock when he saw the woman.

"Chairman Genevieve, what brings you here?"

“You’re in trouble, of course I have to come.”

Genevieve had a faint smile on his face and looked very approachable.

But Bartholomew knew how terrifying Genevieve looked with that expression.

“Tell me why this happened? Do you know how angry I was when I found out about this in San Francisco?”

Under Geneviv's powerful aura, the usually assertive Bartholomew appeared like a quail, cowering and submissive.

“Chairman Genevieve, this is what happened! I was following your instructions to keep an eye on the Laytons’ canyon project, and then an accident happened shortly afterward…”

Bartholomew quickly recounted the events, and Genevieve's face darkened and he looked extremely grim after hearing them.

"I never expected it to be like this!"

"Chairman Genevieve, can you get me out of here?"

Bartholomew looked at Geneviv with anticipation, hoping to hear what she wanted to hear, but reality dealt her a cruel blow.

"You're not getting out anytime soon. Fran Hammer has evidence against you, and he's already submitted it to the Pentagon. Just stay in this prison for a few months, and once things calm down, I'll figure out how to get you out."

Upon hearing this, Bartholomew was somewhat disappointed, but he could still accept the outcome; at least his life was saved.

“I understand, Chairman Genevieve. I will keep quiet.”

Genevieve nodded in satisfaction.

"Then you can stay here and cultivate your character for a while."

After saying that, Genevieve turned and left the prison.

As he walked away from Bartholomew's cell, Genevieve's expression darkened once more.

"Bartholomew is no longer of any value; let her end with dignity."

Genevieve's attendant immediately answered.

"understand!"

After that, Genevieve began talking to himself.

"I'm sorry, Bartholomew! Project Origins cannot afford any changes, so I have no other choice but to resort to this measure."

At night, Bartholomew was trying to fall asleep in the prison. People her age usually have poor sleep and it takes her a long time to fall asleep each time.

The prison door was opened silently, and a figure walked in.

As if sensing something, Bartholomew opened his eyes, only to have someone strangle him with a strip of cloth.

Bartholomew struggled, but she was just an old woman in her fifties and no match for the man behind her.

Bartholomew quickly lost his strength and stopped breathing completely.

The person behind him pulled the strip of cloth back and hung it on the cell door, then shoved Bartholomew's head inside.

After doing all this, the man closed the cell door and disappeared from the military prison.

The next day, Bartholomew's body was discovered by prison guards. Although there were very obvious signs of strangulation, the forensic doctor determined that Bartholomew had committed suicide.

Roy received the news several days later.

"Damn it! I underestimated Amacham's audacity. They actually dared to do something like this before the military court hearing!"

In the manager's office at the Dolphin Hotel, Gerald slammed his hand on the table.

If Bartholomew had been brought to a military court, they could have certainly uncovered more dirt on Amarcham, but unfortunately, he died in a military prison.

Or suicide?

This is practically rubbing the Pentagon's face in the dirt!

Roy, sitting opposite Gerald, didn't seem too surprised by Gerald's words. Perhaps it was because he, being from the future, had heard too many stories about suicide by being shot a dozen times in the back.

"Is the Pentagon just going to let it go like that?"

"Of course not! Even if the Pentagon generals have the best tempers, they couldn't possibly stand it! I've heard from inside sources that the White House will be issuing a massive fine of nearly 10 billion US dollars to Amacham. This will definitely make Amacham pay dearly. Mr. Blake, if you're interested, you can short Amacham. This news won't be announced until the day after tomorrow!"

Roy's eyes lit up. This Gerald was really something, actually telling him such important news.

The nearly $10 billion fine will definitely cause Amacham's stock price to plummet, making shorting at this time a sure-fire way to make a profit.

However, Gerald's approach is actually a long-standing tradition of America's; otherwise, how do you think so many stock market gurus came to be on Capitol Hill?

Isn't it all thanks to this kind of inside information?

"Mr. Orin, thank you for the news."

Roy himself had no experience in short selling stocks, and the women around him also had little to no experience. Fortunately, he recently recruited Catherine.

This woman has the ability to be the top executive in a large company. Even if she herself doesn't know how to trade stocks, she should be able to find reliable professionals to help Roy short sell.

"It's a pity we couldn't kill Amacham outright. Once Amacham recovers, there will be a lot of trouble."

Gerald was somewhat moved.

"What, even a fine of nearly 10 billion US dollars can't bring down Amarcham?"

Roy looked at Gerald with some curiosity.

"It's not that simple! I know that Amacham is facing a huge fine, do you think Amacham's Iron Lady Genevieve Aristide would know? All she needs to do is use all the company's liquid funds, leverage them, to short her own company, and then start buying back shares when the stock price drops to a certain level. That way, she can weather this storm and maybe even make a profit!"

Roy looked like he suddenly understood.

Indeed, in finance, it's hard to lose money if you have insider information.

As for the so-called stock market regulation, that's a joke. Exchanges can openly roll back data and disconnect networks, so fairness and impartiality are just a joke.

There can only be one winner in a casino, and that is the house.

“Mr. Orin, if Amacham still wants to cause trouble, let them come. I’d like to see how many of their high-ranking officials are willing to be killed.”

This incident serves as a stark warning: no one who rises to the top is a fool. Even if Bartholomew's autopsy report states suicide, no one will believe it.

It's a very simple principle: those in high positions will definitely consider their own actions before making decisions, lest they one day end up like Bartholomew, forced to commit suicide.

Gerald nodded.

“You have a point. Even if Genevieve Aristide wants revenge, no one will go crazy with her.”

"I think it won't be easy for that woman to keep her position as chairman."

Roy and Gerald exchanged a smile, no longer taking Amacham Company seriously.

"By the way, Mr. Orin, I'm going back to Texas tomorrow."

"Are you leaving so soon? Why not stay a few more days?" With Roy in Los Angeles, Gerald felt particularly at ease; no matter what happened, he could just turn to Roy.

"No, my family keeps urging me to go back to school, and I need to prepare some things."

Actually, it was Lilith who kept calling Roy back because she was eager to get a new body.

Roy and his friends will be starting school in a week. If they don't figure out how to deal with their physical problems while it's still summer vacation, they'll have to wait a long time before university starts.

Gerald chuckled.

"Haha! Every time I chat with you, I forget that you're still a student."

"Mr. Orin, please help me say goodbye to Saltana."

Why didn't you say goodbye to Rivera yourself?

Roy shrugged helplessly.

“Saltana has been avoiding me lately, and she won’t even answer my calls.”

The main problem is that Roy's body is too strong, and Saltana simply can't withstand it alone. Currently, there are no teammates in Los Angeles who can share the damage, which means she has to rest for a whole day after each battle.

She's been resting every day, using up all of Saltana's vacation time.

With no other option, Saltana had to hide to avoid being defeated by Roy again.

Gerald gave Roy a thumbs up; such physical attributes were something every man dreamed of.

"I will talk to her."

After speaking with Gerald, Roy left Gerald's office and then called Catherine to explain that he was going to short Amarcham.

At first, Catherine didn't understand, because as a global giant, Amarcham's stock price had always been very stable, and shorting such a company would require a huge amount of money.

Unless a black swan event occurs, no one would want to short Amarcham.

However, a black swan event is indeed on its way.

Roy explained the information he had received to Catherine, who immediately understood and said she would bring Penny along to complete the short-selling operation.

Catherine's ability to serve as a company secretary for so many years is not due to her looks, but rather to her work skills and ability to read people.

To be honest, this woman's face shape is very ordinary, and she probably wasn't pretty even when she was young, so she really rose to the top through her own abilities.

Roy was very pleased that Catherine chose to bring Penny along to do the short selling.

After arranging the work, Roy found Mary.

"Roy, are you going back to Texas tomorrow?"

Mary's face was full of disappointment. She had felt very happy with Roy these past few days, so she was naturally reluctant to see him leave.

The two had actually established a relationship, but the conservative Mary hadn't yet allowed Roy to cross that final line.

However, Roy is confident that he can completely win over Merry in the second half of the year.

Because Mary has become less and less resistant to Roy's physical intimacy. At first, she would be shy even if he kissed her, but now she can hug, kiss and touch him without any problem.

How many days has it been?

It's only a matter of time before he hits a home run.

"Why are you making that face? Don't forget we'll see each other again in a week at the latest,"

Mei smiled upon hearing this.

"That's true! I've almost forgotten what day it is!"

It's said that being in love makes women stupid, and Mei Li is showing signs of that now; she no longer looks like a female academic star.

"You just stay in Los Angeles and wait for me. I'll come back to find you in September."

"Ok!"

Mary rested her head against Roy's firm chest, greedily inhaling his scent.

She wouldn't be able to smell that scent for the next week, so Mary had to smell it to her heart's content now.

Roy was amused by Roy's sniffing motion, which resembled that of a puppy.

"If you want to smell it, I can take off my clothes and let you smell it."

Upon hearing this, Mary immediately blushed and moved away from Roy's body.

Mary couldn't possibly be unaware of what taking off her clothes meant; she wasn't mentally prepared for it yet and needed some time to prepare herself mentally.

"Roy, don't forget to reply to my MSN when you get back!"

"I won't forget it."

The next day, Roy stood on the outskirts of Los Angeles, preparing to return to Fallstown. This time, he would try to use his new ability, teleportation, to return to Sawyer Manor in Fallstown.

During his time in Los Angeles, Roy had practiced his teleportation ability. Teleportation within line of sight was no problem at all, and he had also tried mid-range teleportation across most of the city, with the error now largely under control.

Next, we will try long-distance interstate travel.

Long-distance teleportation is certainly not easy, but once Roy masters it, he will have a trump card and will be able to avoid the fatigue of long journeys and save a lot of time.

"Focus your attention and visualize the location of Sawyer Manor..."

Telepathic communication within visual range can be completed simply by seeing it; it's very simple.

However, telepathic communication beyond visual range requires imagining the location or having spatial coordinates.

The greater the distance, the more important spatial coordinates become, because imagination may not be able to pinpoint the location accurately, but spatial coordinates can.

Unfortunately, Roy wasn't a wizard and hadn't systematically learned how to establish spatial coordinates, so he could only determine the direction of the teleportation through imagination.

This requires Roy to have been to that place in order to imagine it. If he hasn't been there, he can't determine the direction of the teleportation, and if he forces the teleportation, he won't know where he will be teleported to.

"Teleportation!"

Roy's body flashed red light and then disappeared from the spot.

The next second, Roy appeared on a somewhat familiar road, and a large truck almost couldn't brake in time and hit him.

"Are you out of your mind? Why did you suddenly appear in the middle of the road?!"

Truck drivers are usually short-tempered, especially Roy, who almost caused him to crash.

What the driver didn't know was that he was the one who almost hit the jackpot.

Given Roy's current physical condition, it's highly likely that the truck driver was the one who was hit and injured by the truck; Roy will be fine.

However, since Roy was ultimately at fault, he still apologized.

"Excuse me, I was feeling a little dizzy just now."

The truck driver drove off, cursing and swearing, leaving Roy to observe the surroundings.

"It seems like we're still more than ten kilometers away from Waterfall Town. I didn't expect the error in long-distance teleportation to be so large."

But ultimately, it saves thousands of kilometers of travel, so an error of a dozen kilometers is acceptable.

"I should have hitched a ride with the truck earlier. Now I have no choice but to ask Claudia to pick me up."

Or Meryl
(End of this chapter)