The lawsuit was filed.
Not quietly.
With a press conference.
With the lawyers standing behind Damien.
With the world watching.
And the student loan industry panicked.
The press conference was held in the lobby of the new building.
Not a hotel lobby. Not a law firm lobby.
A home.
The lawyers stood behind Damien. Maya. David. Sarah. James. Others.
Sterling stood to his right.
Christabel stood to his left.
Lena was with the nanny.
The cameras were everywhere.
Damien stepped to the podium.
No notes.
No teleprompter.
Just him.
"Thank you for coming."
The room was silent.
"I'm not going to give a speech. I'm going to tell you a story."
He looked at Maya.
"Maya Thompson was two hundred thousand dollars in debt. She worked as a barista. She lived in a studio apartment with mold on the walls."
Maya's eyes were wet.
"She was approached by a cartel. They offered her fifty thousand dollars to look the other way. She almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then she came to work for me. Her debt is gone. Her life is hers. She's free."
---
He looked at David.
"David Kim was one hundred fifty thousand dollars in debt. He worked as a paralegal. He did the work of a lawyer. He got paid a fraction of the salary."
David's jaw was tight.
"He was approached by a cartel. They offered him seventy-five thousand dollars to file motions, delay trials, lose evidence. He almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then he came to work for me. His debt is gone. His mother's surgery was paid for. He's free."
He looked at Sarah.
"Sarah Johnson was three hundred thousand dollars in debt. She worked as a legal aid. She helped people who couldn't afford lawyers. She made almost nothing."
Sarah was crying.
"She was approached by a cartel. They offered her one hundred thousand dollars to exploit loopholes, help them avoid prosecution. She almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then she came to work for me. Her debt is gone. Her mother doesn't have to work three jobs anymore. She's free."
---
He looked at James.
"James Wilson was two hundred fifty thousand dollars in debt. He worked as a public defender. Overworked. Underpaid. Burning out."
James's hands were shaking.
"He was approached by a cartel. They offered him two hundred thousand dollars to discredit witnesses, bury evidence, make problems disappear. He almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then he came to work for me. His debt is gone. He's free."
---
Damien turned to the cameras.
"These are not isolated stories. There are thousands of Maya's. Thousands of David's. Thousands of Sarah's. Thousands of James's."
He paused.
"They're brilliant. They're talented. They're desperate. And the system is failing them."
He leaned forward.
"Student loans are not an investment in the future. They're a trap. A trap that keeps brilliant people poor. A trap that pushes them into the arms of cartels. A trap that benefits no one except the lenders."
---
The room was silent.
"Today, I'm filing a class action lawsuit against the student loan industry. For twenty million dollars."
The reporters scribbled notes.
"The money will not go to me. It will go into a fund. A fund to pay off student loans for the truly brilliant but unlucky. The ones who have everything to give and nothing to start with."
He looked at the lawyers behind him.
"They will administer the fund. They will choose the recipients. They will change lives."
---
A reporter raised her hand.
"Mr. Moreau, isn't this just a publicity stunt?"
Damien looked at her.
"Do I need publicity?"
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only one I have."
Another reporter raised his hand.
"Mr. Moreau, aren't you just buying loyalty?"
"I'm buying freedom."
"Same thing."
"Different intention."
---
Another reporter raised her hand.
"Mr. Moreau, what do you say to critics who call this a cult?"
Damien smiled.
"Let them visit. Let them see. Let them talk to the people who live here. Then let them decide."
Maya stepped forward.
The reporters looked at her.
"I was a barista," she said. "I was two hundred thousand dollars in debt. I was approached by a cartel. I almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then Damien Moreau called. He didn't ask me to do anything illegal. He didn't ask me to compromise my values. He asked me to work. To grow. To become who I was meant to be."
She looked at the cameras.
"That's not a cult. That's a family."
David stepped forward.
"I was a paralegal," he said. "I was one hundred fifty thousand dollars in debt. I was approached by a cartel. I almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then Damien Moreau called. He paid off my debt. He saved my mother's life. He gave me a future."
He looked at the cameras.
"That's not a cult. That's a miracle."
---
Sarah stepped forward.
"I was a legal aid," she said. "I was three hundred thousand dollars in debt. I was approached by a cartel. I almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then Damien Moreau called. He gave my mother a home. He gave me a life. He gave us hope."
She looked at the cameras.
"That's not a cult. That's love."
---
James stepped forward.
"I was a public defender," he said. "I was two hundred fifty thousand dollars in debt. I was approached by a cartel. I almost said yes."
The room was silent.
"Then Damien Moreau called. He gave me a library. He gave me a purpose. He gave me a family."
He looked at the cameras.
"That's not a cult. That's redemption."
The press conference ended.
The reporters filed out.
The cameras stopped rolling.
Damien stood alone at the podium.
Christabel walked to him.
Took his hand.
"You did it."
"We did it."
"You spoke."
"They listened."
"Same thing."
"Different intention."
---
That night, Christabel put Lena to bed.
Not Damien. Her.
Lena was full of questions.
"Mama, why was Papa on TV?"
"Because he helped people."
"What people?"
"People who needed help."
"Like the baby?"
Christabel laughed.
"Like the baby."
Damien appeared in the doorway.
"She's asleep?"
"She's dreaming."
"Of what?"
"Of you."
He walked to her.
Took her hand.
"The lawsuit is filed."
"I know."
"The fund is created."
"I know."
"The world is watching."
She looked at him.
"Let them watch."
First Line of Chapter 166 (Teaser):
"The one hundred twenty-first week, the first recipients of the fund were chosen. Not by Damien. By the lawyers. People who had been where they were. People who knew what it felt like to drown. And the cycle of saving began."