On the third day after the victory at the hearing, Leo received an unexpected phone call.
The call came from Allen Wexler’s assistant.
Attorney Wexler wanted to invite Leo to a private meeting.
“A negotiation,” Roosevelt said in Leo’s mind. “They’ve been hurt. Public pressure has forced them to sit down and try to deal with us at the lowest possible cost.”
The meeting was set for a private conference room in an upscale hotel downtown.
Leo decided to go meet this snake in a suit.
Sarah insisted on accompanying Leo as his assistant.
Frank, meanwhile, brought along two old buddies as burly as he was, driving a battered pickup and following the taxi carrying Leo and Sarah.
Frank insisted on waiting for them outside the hotel.
“If that punk in the suit dares try anything funny with you,” Frank said to Leo as he rolled down the window, “I’ll strip every last tire off the Cadillac he parked out front.”
Leo walked into the hotel’s resplendent lobby.
Wexler’s assistant, a young woman in a business suit, was already waiting there.
She led Leo and Sarah down the corridor to a private conference room.
Wexler was already seated at one end of the conference table.
He was not wearing a suit, only an expensive cashmere sweater, his posture elegant, as though he were receiving guests in his own living room.
He rose and shook Leo’s hand with a smile.
“Mr. Wallace, I’m very glad you could come,” he said. “Please, have a seat. Would you like something to drink? The coffee here is quite good.”
Leo and Sarah sat down across from him.
“No, thank you, Mr. Wexler,” Leo said. “Let’s get straight to it.”
Wexler nodded, the smile on his face unchanged.
He got straight to the point and laid out his proposal.
“Mr. Wallace, first of all, I must acknowledge that you and your team have done truly outstanding work over the past week. You successfully turned a simple commercial dispute into a public issue that the entire city is watching. Personally, I admire that.”
He paused, as if observing Leo’s expression.
“My client, Summit Development Group, is a responsible corporation. We never intended to make an enemy of the community. After the hearing, we listened carefully to the opinions of the citizens, and we are willing to make concessions.”
He took a document from a folder and pushed it in front of Leo.
It was a beautifully designed architectural rendering.
“Our company is willing to fully fund the construction of an entirely new and better-equipped facility for the Steelworkers Community Center on the other side of the city. It will be twice as large as the current one, and all the equipment will be brand new. In addition, we will make a one-time payment covering all relocation expenses, as well as operating funds for the next three years.”
He leaned forward and looked at Leo.
“We believe this is a win-win proposal. The community gets a better new home, and my client can smoothly advance his business plan. What do you think?”
Roosevelt’s voice rang out in Leo’s mind.
“A typical capitalist trick. They use money to buy legitimacy, using a seemingly generous offer to break down your will to fight.”
“Isn’t it a good thing to have a new community center, since the current one is so old?” Leo asked.
Roosevelt replied, “Child, this is a carefully designed trap.”
“Think about it. The elderly people who need this center the most—do they have the ability to cross half the city every day to go to an unfamiliar place? Geographically, this proposal severs the connection between the community center and the people it serves.”
“And can they truly fulfill their promise and build it? If they just drag their feet a little, who will still care about this in three or five years?”
“So don’t let him lead you by his intentions.”
Leo raised his head and looked straight into Wexler’s eyes.
“Mr. Wexler, we are not sitting here today to discuss relocation. We are here to discuss preservation.”
His voice was extremely firm.
“The value of the Steelworkers Community Center lies in its history, in its location, in the fact that it is deeply rooted in the soil of this workers’ community. It is not a pile of bricks and cement that can be moved at will.”
“The proposal you’ve made sounds generous, but it doesn’t solve any problem. You simply want to use money to make us shut up, so that you can tear down our history with a clear conscience and build your luxury apartments on top of it.”
Leo gave him no chance to refute him and presented his own three demands.
“First, Summit Development Group must immediately withdraw its plan to acquire the community center site.”
“Second, as compensation for the harm caused to the community, Summit Development Group must fund the payment of all property taxes owed by the community center and pledge to support the center’s operations for the next ten years.”
“Third, Mayor Cartwright and the CEO of Summit Development Group must jointly hold a press conference to publicly apologize to all citizens of Pittsburgh, and solemnly promise that the Steelworkers Community Center will be permanently preserved as part of Pittsburgh’s urban historical and cultural heritage.”
After listening to Leo’s three demands, Wexler laughed contemptuously.
“Mr. Wallace, you’re very passionate. I’ll acknowledge that. But you are truly, profoundly unrealistic.”
“Let’s clarify a few basic facts.”
“First, my client participated in a legal bidding process, and every procedure complied with the law. Second, Mayor Cartwright has done nothing wrong either. Meeting with entrepreneurs is part of his job. Third, the community center’s unpaid property taxes are an unchangeable fact.”
“I am sitting here talking with you today not because we are afraid of you, but out of respect for public opinion. The proposal I have made is the only way out, and it is also our final gesture of goodwill.”
He put away the smile on his face, and his eyes turned cold.
“If you refuse, then we will see you in court. When the time comes, I believe the judge will make a fair ruling. And you will not even get a brand-new community center.”
A deadlock had formed.
For the next hour, the two sides traded arguments.
The first negotiation ultimately ended unhappily, with both sides saying they would “go back and think it over.”
As Leo and Sarah prepared to leave, Wexler even walked over “amicably” and patted Leo on the shoulder.
“Young man, don’t be too idealistic,” he said. “This world runs on compromise. Learning to accept an imperfect victory will be good for your future development.”
Leo ignored him. Taking Sarah with him, he walked out of the conference room without looking back.
As soon as they stepped out of the hotel, Frank immediately came over to meet them.
“How was it? That punk didn’t give you any trouble, did he?”
Leo shook his head.
“He offered us a new home.”
“Isn’t that a good thing?” Frank asked, somewhat puzzled.
“He wants us to get the hell off our own land,” Leo said.
Frank’s face darkened instantly.