Lista Austin

Episode 7: The Demand
Lege finally spoke.
“I want to be a shareholder.”
Naato froze.
Lege continued, his voice calm but firm.
“You brought money. I brought ideas. We should be partners.”
Silence filled the room.
Then Naato laughed… cold and harsh.
“You? Partner?”
Lege didn’t move.
He stood his ground.
“Yes,” he said. “This business grew because of my ideas. I deserve more than a salary.”
Naato walked slowly around him, like a man inspecting something worthless.
“Let me remind you who you are,” Naato said quietly.
“You came to me with nothing. No money. No power.”
He stopped in front of Lege.
“I gave you a roof. Food. A job.”
His voice hardened.
“And now… you want to sit beside me?”
Lege swallowed, but he didn’t back down.
“I worked for it,” he replied.
Naato’s eyes darkened.
“No,” he snapped. “You worked for me.”
The words hit hard.
But Lege had come too far to stay silent.
“If I stop giving ideas today… what happens to this business?” he asked.
That question hung in the air.
Heavy. Dangerous.
Naato’s jaw tightened.
For a second… just a second…
He had no answer.
But pride would not let him show it.
He straightened his suit.
“You are forgetting your place,” Naato said coldly.
Lege shook his head slowly.
“No,” he replied. “For the first time… I’m remembering it.”
The tension in the room grew thick.
Two men.
One with money.
One with the mind.
And both unwilling to bow.
That moment…
Changed everything.