I bought a prison in the United States.

The answering machine started up again, and Baylors' voice came through the small speaker:

"Robert, you bastard, are you even here?!"

His voice was so loud it sounded like he was arguing, a stark contrast to his composed demeanor just a few days ago.

After all, this time the fire had truly burned him.

Bellus cursed furiously:

"All my contracts have been suspended, and the bank is pressing me for loan repayments!"

"Do you know that idiot Hart has his wife listed on his tab?"

"I told him from the beginning not to do something so obvious, but he wouldn't listen, and now it's all over!"

"I've already investigated. The whole thing started when a detective hired by Ringo Chan bribed one of my employees in McLean County to steal accounting information!"

"He wanted to harm you, but he stabbed us first!"

"I got dragged into this because of you, you damn fool! Call me back right now!"

Hammond listened to the message, a bitter smile creeping onto his lips.

If he had a solution, would he still be hiding?

Bellus's voice came through the loudspeaker, buzzing like a headless fly bobbing against the glass in a closed room.

The message was finished, the answering machine beeped, and the red light went out.

"Damn Ringo!"

Hammond, his face grim, picked up the pen on the table and wrote a few words on a sticky note.

He didn't write anything important, he just casually wrote down today's date, November 27th.

As if he had finally made up his mind, he picked up the phone and made the first call he made that day.

That was the direct number of a partner at a Tulsa law firm named Nolan, who specialized in defending white-collar criminals.

Nolan introduced him to several clients, and he also introduced Nolan to several cases that were easy to win.

The two had a relationship that was neither particularly deep nor shallow.

"Nolan, this is Robert Hammond. I'd like to ask you something."

"Your Honor, I suppose you're asking about the procurement committee's audit."

Nolan's voice was as calm as still water, like a doctor informing a patient's family of the test results, without any emotion.

Hammond's voice was somewhat hoarse:

"So you've already heard about it. Are you interested in taking this case?"

"Your Honor, to be frank, I will not take this case."

Nolan's answer was also very direct:

"Because it's useless to accept it. The audit has already started, and once the report is released, no matter what the conclusion is, the media will get it."

"You've been a judge in this county for over a decade, and you've offended more people than you know."

"Those people would take the audit report to reporters, and the reporters would take pictures of every page, enlarge them, and publish them on the front page of the newspaper."

"By then, what you'll need won't be a lawyer, but a time machine."

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone. Nolan knew very well that the Supreme Court Justice couldn't possibly be unaware of these things that he knew.

The other party was just trying to find another lifeline.

Nolan sighed:

"Hamond, we've known each other for five or six years, and this is the last time I'll say something to you as a friend."

"Your friends in political and legal circles probably won't answer your calls today."

"They all care a lot about their jobs. You've been holding an umbrella for them for twenty years, but now that the rain has stopped, nobody needs an umbrella anymore."

Hammond sighed heavily and angrily hung up the phone.

This was the first time in over a decade that he had felt so utterly powerless.

Lingo's movements were too fast, catching him off guard.

The other party has clearly received strong support from Deputy Commissioner Boone of the State Department of Corrections.

Even if he used some less-than-honorable methods, there were lawyers like Eleanor who were good at exploiting legal loopholes to resolve the disputes for him.

Lin Ge used a strategy of retreat to advance, seemingly standing in the open, but effectively locking down Lin Ge's hands and feet in the shadows, leaving him helpless.

Hart has been arrested, and Bellus is in a terrible predicament; he'll probably break with them soon.

Hammond has already exhausted all the means at his disposal, and no one can help him anymore.

He had used all his moves, but his opponent had not yet fallen into the killing line. What awaited him next was an attack from which he could not fight back!

Hammond stood up and paced around his desk, growing increasingly agitated with each step.

Finally, he slammed his hand on the table and roared:

"Lin Ge, you bastard!"

Outside the office door, secretary Margaret had been eavesdropping.

Hearing the noise inside, she was so frightened that she almost screamed. She quickly covered her mouth and scrambled back to her workstation.

The judge has locked himself in his office for almost eight hours today, barely drinking any water or eating anything.

She was really worried that something might happen to the other party.

Hammond picked up the calendar on the table in the office and flipped through it haphazardly.

In three days, it will be the county council's regular meeting. Hart will make a personal statement that day, and he will definitely confess everything under pressure.

Hammond knew Hart well; if necessary, he would definitely choose to shift the blame to someone else.

It's not impossible that he would even betray his old friend.

They are friends when there is profit to be made, but when disaster strikes, they only think of themselves and assume the worst about each other.

Hammond then realized that everyone in this web of relationships was a spider.

They all have very long arms and legs, and they also have another thing in common.

Spiders will eat their own kind!

Next Thursday, the Tulsa World will probably publish its third report, and he can even guess the title:

[McLean County Procurement Scandal: Sordid Deals Between Judges and Contractors]

The audit report should be on the county prosecutor's desk next Friday.

The week after next, people will probably start "kindly" asking him if he needs to hire a lawyer.

If the higher-ups intend to boost their anti-corruption performance at the end of the year and use this as a pretext to take action, the entire McLean County will be turned upside down!

"...!"

He closed the calendar, pressed it heavily on top of the three slips of paper, then lay blankly in the chair, staring up at the empty ceiling.

He had sat in this office for fifteen years, from eight in the morning to five in the afternoon, and never felt that time would be as agonizing as it was today.

Hammond slowly closed his heavy old eyes.

The office was quiet, except for the buzzing of the overhead fluorescent lights.

The voice was very low; you couldn't hear it at all unless you listened carefully.

But once you notice it, you can't get rid of it; it keeps ringing and ringing...

It was as if an insect had crawled into his ear, built a nest behind his eardrum, and was gnawing away at his last shred of composure.

Three days later, Tulsa experienced its first frost of the winter.

The cold air felt like fine needles, pricking the exposed skin and bringing a sharp, stinging sensation.