Calculated Risks

The evening air was crisp as Lex walked back to the brownstone. His thoughts swirling in every direction. The streets were quieter now, as the night shadowed. 

Lex went straight to the office. He said down at the old desk and open his laptop started putting together everything he knew about his Uncle.

Barnard Maddox the 3rd.

He typed the name out first, letting it sit at the top of the document like a target. Beneath it, he started adding layers—dates, company names, transactions. The web of his uncle's dealings was tangled, but not impenetrable.

Shell companies. Offshore accounts.

He printed out bank records he'd obtained, the ones showing funds funneled out of the trust. Then came the properties, some bought under different names, some still under Barnie's own. He pinned a printed map to the corkboard by his desk, marking each acquisition in red.

Lex reached for another folder, pulling out grainy security stills from the estate—the night the Picasso disappeared. The Irish mob walking out with the stolen painting, Rose's black eye. He clenched his jaw as he clipped them next to the other documents.

Marriages. Divorces. Settlements.

Barnie's first wife, Isabelle Laurent, had been old money—French aristocracy with a jewelry empire to her name. They married young, a whirlwind romance that made headlines. But Isabelle was no fool. When Barnie's risky investments started pulling at her inheritance, she walked, leaving with her fortune intact. The divorce settlement was barely a blip in her wealth, but for Barnie, it was his first lesson in marrying up.

Then came Victoria Langley, the socialite with a Wall Street father. Their marriage was less about love and more about connections—access to hedge funds, insider deals, and invitations to private clubs where real power exchanged hands. But Victoria had her own ambitions. When she realized Barnie wasn't a partner but a leech, she aired their dirty laundry in the press before settling for an undisclosed sum. The scandal nearly cost him his standing in Manhattan's elite circles.

Next was Vanessa Carlisle a young beautiful actress. From Hollywood dynastic tracing back to her great grandfather, Barnie gain useful connections lawyers, publicist and build a solid image of himself. Their divorce had been messy and very public.

Elena Russo was a different play. The daughter of an Italian shipping magnate, her family had deep roots in both legitimate business and offshore dealings. Barnie's time with her gave him access to accounts in Switzerland, properties in Milan, and a seat at the table with men who didn't take kindly to debts. When the marriage ended, Elena left with the townhome in the Upper East Side, and Barnie kept his fingers in her family's business—just enough to still call in favors.

His fourth marriage to Alexandra Davenport was the boldest. She wasn't just wealthy—she was dangerous. Daughter of a South American banker with alleged cartel ties, Alexandra was used to power plays. They married in private, a quiet ceremony, and for a while, Barnie thrived. He leveraged her father's network, moved money in ways that made even Elias uneasy. But Alexandra wasn't a woman to be crossed. When Barnie strayed, she didn't just divorce him—she made sure his name was whispered in circles he had no business being in. He walked away with stocks and two sports cars, but more importantly, a target on his back.

Fifth time around, Anya Volkova. Russian model, ex-wife of a tech billionaire. A trophy wife who knew how to play the game just as well as he did. Barnie saw her as an easy mark—she had money, status, and no real interest in business. But Anya had her own reasons for saying yes. She used Barnie to rebrand herself, gain credibility in the art world, and by the time she was ready to leave, she took half his art collection. The divorce was clean, but had cost Barnie more than he realized.

Some say six times a charm, Liam Bradford. The youngest spoil scion of a prominent London banking family. Charismatic and ambitious, he shared Barnie's sharp intellect and appetite for power, making them a formidable couple that was until he learn of Barnies had been embezzling charitable funds. The divorce was aggressive and Barnie lost the London town house and many European assets. 

Then his current wife, wife number seven—Genevieve Sinclair. Genevieve was different from Barnie's usual conquests. She wasn't born into wealth, nor did she have powerful connections. A single mother working as an art consultant, she met Barnie at a charity gala, where he played the role of a charming benefactor. To Genevieve, Barnie was a savior—sophisticated, generous, and seemingly enamored with both her and her young daughter.

For a while, it felt like a fairytale. Barnie provided stability, introducing her to a world she had only admired from the sidelines. He moved them into a Park Avenue apartment, draped her in designer clothes, and made grand promises about securing a future for her daughter. But the illusion shattered quickly. Soon she discovered his affairs—not just with women but with younger men—reality came crashing down. Currently, they were seperated with pending divorce in the process, not that there was any assets to divide but the young step daughter had been Barnie's many circles he had been denied before.