Chapter 7: The Last Gamble Martin's laptop screen showed 7:23 AM. He'd been awake since five, lying on the warehouse floor thinking about nothing in particular. At some point he'd stopped calculating outcomes and just stared at the ceiling crack that seemed wider every day. The email from Jennifer Marks sat in his inbox with a red flag marker. Subject line read "Notice of Judgment Filing - Chen Manufacturing v. Shaw." He opened it because ignoring it wouldn't change anything. The message was three paragraphs of legal formatting explaining that her client had filed for judgment in the amount of ten thousand dollars plus attorney fees and court costs. Total amount claimed was twelve thousand three hundred forty-seven dollars. Martin should expect to be served with papers within three to five business days. The judgment would be enforceable against his personal assets upon entry. Martin closed the email and opened a new browser tab. He searched "Chapter 7 bankruptcy forms California" and clicked the first government website result. The forms were free to download. Filing fees were three hundred thirty-eight dollars. He had four hundred fifty dollars in his account after yesterday's wire transfer. Filing for bankruptcy would leave him with one hundred twelve dollars. But it would stop David Chen's company from pursuing the judgment. The automatic stay would freeze collection efforts while the trustee reviewed his assets. Martin downloaded the forms. Twenty-three pages total. Questions about income, assets, debts, recent transfers, business operations. He opened the first page and started reading instructions. Section 1 asked for his current monthly income from all sources. He typed zero. The platform had generated commissions but none had been paid yet. His last regular employment ended three years ago with the food truck collapse. Section 2 asked about assets. He listed his car worth maybe two thousand dollars, his checking account balance of four hundred fifty dollars, and his laptop worth approximately three hundred dollars. Total assets of twenty-seven hundred fifty dollars. Section 3 asked about debts. Martin started typing. The judgment from David Chen's company for twelve thousand three hundred forty-seven dollars. Credit card balances totaling eight thousand nine hundred dollars. Warehouse lease arrears of six hundred dollars. The loan from Rebecca three years ago for one thousand dollars that he'd never formalized in writing. Total debts exceeded twenty-two thousand dollars. Against assets of twenty-seven hundred fifty. Martin filled out three more sections before his phone buzzed. Email notification. He almost ignored it but the sender name caught his attention. "Lone Star Department Stores - Corporate Procurement." He opened the email. The message was from someone named Patricia Hernandez with a title of Regional Purchasing Director. She'd found Martin's platform through a web search for artisan product suppliers. Lone Star Department Stores operated fifteen locations across Texas and was exploring options for expanding their home goods sections with handcrafted items. They were interested in discussing bulk orders of various product categories including ceramics, textiles, woodwork, and metalcraft. Potential order values would depend on pricing and production capacity but initial projections suggested spending approximately two hundred thousand dollars across multiple manufacturers over a six-month rollout. Patricia wanted to schedule a call to discuss the platform's capabilities and supplier network. Would Martin be available for a meeting later this week? Martin read the email three times. Two hundred thousand in order value meant twenty thousand in commission. That would pay off the judgment, cover his debts, and leave enough runway to actually operate the platform properly. But the email had arrived the morning after he'd defaulted on an eighteen-hundred-dollar payment. The same morning he was filling out bankruptcy forms because he had zero credibility and negative assets. He opened a reply window and started typing. Professional tone, thanking Patricia for reaching out, expressing enthusiasm about the opportunity. He suggested a call for Friday afternoon. Before sending, Martin paused. A phone call was one thing. But Patricia had mentioned wanting to meet in person to review product samples and discuss contract terms in detail. The email suggested she was based in Dallas. Martin couldn't afford a flight to Dallas. His four hundred fifty dollars needed to cover bankruptcy filing fees and maybe food for the next week. A round-trip ticket to Dallas would cost at least three hundred dollars, probably more on short notice. He deleted the part about Friday afternoon and instead wrote that he could make himself available whenever worked best for her schedule. Then he sent the email before second-guessing further. The bankruptcy forms sat open in another window. Martin looked at the section asking about anticipated income. If he filed for bankruptcy today, the Texas department store deal would be impossible. No company spending two hundred thousand dollars would work with someone in active bankruptcy proceedings. The credibility issues would be insurmountable. But if he didn't file, David Chen's company would proceed with enforcing the judgment. They could attach his bank account, which meant the four hundred fifty dollars would disappear immediately. They could put a lien on his car. The platform would still collapse, just through a different mechanism. Martin's phone rang. Unknown number. He answered expecting a collection call. "This is Patricia Hernandez from Lone Star Department Stores. I just sent you an email but figured I'd call directly since we're on a tight timeline." Martin switched to professional mode. "Thanks for reaching out. I saw your email. Two hundred thousand in artisan products over six months is definitely something my platform can facilitate." "Good. I need to move quickly on this. Our merchandising team wants to launch the new home goods sections by mid-January, which gives us about six weeks for supplier selection and initial orders. Can you meet in Dallas on Friday?" Friday was three days away. Martin looked at his laptop screen showing four hundred fifty dollars in available funds. "Friday works for me," Martin said. "What time?" "Let's say ten AM. Our headquarters is in Richardson, just north of Dallas. I'll send you the address." Patricia asked several questions about manufacturer vetting processes, quality control standards, and commission structures. Martin explained the platform's ten percent model and the escrow payment system. He tried to sound confident while avoiding any mention of recent escrow violations or pending judgments. The call lasted fifteen minutes. Patricia seemed satisfied with his answers and promised to send a detailed agenda for Friday's meeting. Martin thanked her and hung up. His laptop still showed the bankruptcy forms. Section 7 asked about business operations and whether the debtor anticipated any significant income changes in the next six months. Martin closed the bankruptcy forms without saving. He opened a new browser tab and searched for flights to Dallas. The cheapest option departing Thursday evening and returning Saturday morning was four hundred twelve dollars. That would leave him with thirty-eight dollars in his account. Martin entered his payment information and hovered over the purchase button. If the Texas deal fell through, he'd have spent his last money on a flight to a meeting that produced nothing. He wouldn't be able to file for bankruptcy because he wouldn't have enough for the filing fees. David Chen's company would enforce their judgment and attach whatever assets remained. But if he didn't go to Dallas, the deal would definitely fall through. Patricia wouldn't work with someone who couldn't be bothered to meet in person for a potential two-hundred-thousand-dollar contract. Martin clicked purchase. The confirmation screen appeared showing his flight details. Departure Thursday at 6:45 PM, arrival in Dallas at 10:30 PM. Return Saturday at 7:15 AM. His checking account balance dropped to thirty-eight dollars. Martin opened his email and drafted a message to Jennifer Marks. He explained that he was pursuing a significant business opportunity that would generate sufficient funds to satisfy the judgment in full. He requested a seven-day extension on all collection activities to allow time to close the deal. The message sounded desperate because it was desperate. But Jennifer Marks would probably ignore it anyway. Her client had spent months dealing with Martin's promises and failures. One more request for an extension wouldn't change their enforcement strategy. He sent the email and immediately received an auto-reply. Jennifer Marks was out of the office until Monday. For urgent matters, contact her associate attorney. Martin didn't contact the associate attorney. He closed his email and returned to the platform database. If he was going to Dallas on Friday, he needed to prepare materials showing manufacturer capabilities across all the product categories Patricia had mentioned. Ceramics, textiles, woodwork, metalcraft. The database had suppliers in each category but he needed to organize them into a presentation format that demonstrated depth and reliability. He spent three hours building a supplier portfolio document. Each manufacturer got a one-page profile showing production capacity, product samples, pricing ranges, and lead times. The document ended up at forty-seven pages covering twenty-three different manufacturers. Martin exported it as a PDF and reviewed the final version. It looked professional enough. Whether it would convince a department store chain to commit two hundred thousand dollars was unclear. His phone showed 11:34 AM. He needed to email Patricia confirming Friday's meeting and sending the supplier portfolio as preliminary reference material. The email took twenty minutes to compose. Professional tone, expressing appreciation for the opportunity, providing the supplier portfolio as an overview of platform capabilities. Martin attached the PDF and sent the message. Patricia replied within an hour. She'd review the portfolio before Friday and prepare specific questions about manufacturers that aligned with Lone Star's quality standards and price points. The meeting agenda would focus on contract structures, delivery timelines, and quality assurance processes. Martin opened a new document and started drafting responses to probable questions. Contract structures were straightforward since he had templates already developed. Delivery timelines varied by manufacturer but averaged six to eight weeks for most product categories. Quality assurance was the weak point since he didn't have formal inspection processes beyond manufacturer warranties. He spent the afternoon researching quality control standards for wholesale goods and creating a framework that sounded legitimate without requiring resources he didn't have. The final document outlined a three-tier inspection system involving manufacturer self-certification, random sampling protocols, and retailer approval checkpoints. Whether any of it would actually work was questionable. But it sounded professional enough for a preliminary meeting. By 6 PM Martin had assembled a comprehensive presentation package including the supplier portfolio, contract templates, quality assurance framework, and pricing structures for different order volumes. Everything was organized in a folder on his laptop ready to present on Friday. His phone buzzed. Email from David Chen. The message was short. David had been informed that Martin was traveling to Dallas for a business meeting. If Martin was capable of affording flights to Texas, he was capable of paying the judgment he'd defaulted on. David's company would be pursuing immediate asset attachment and had instructed their attorney to file for bank account garnishment. Martin read the email twice. Someone had told David about the Dallas trip. The only people who knew were Patricia Hernandez and whoever else at Lone Star Department Stores had been copied on the meeting confirmation. Which meant David or his attorney had been monitoring Martin's business communications somehow. Probably through the platform website or email servers. Martin didn't have the technical knowledge to confirm surveillance but the timing was too convenient to be coincidence. He drafted a response explaining that the Dallas meeting represented an opportunity to generate funds sufficient to satisfy the judgment in full plus accumulated interest. Pursuing asset attachment now would eliminate his ability to close the deal and would result in recovery of pennies on the dollar through eventual bankruptcy proceedings. Martin sent the message and immediately regretted it. The response made him sound more desperate and gave David confirmation that the bankruptcy threat was real. His phone showed 6:47 PM. Thursday's flight departed in less than twenty-four hours. Martin needed to pack, finalize his presentation materials, and figure out transportation to the airport. He walked to his car in the warehouse parking lot. The drive to his apartment took eighteen minutes. Inside, Martin threw clothes into a small duffel bag. Two shirts, one pair of pants, basic toiletries. The bag had been used for the food truck venture three years ago and still had grease stains on the bottom. Back at the warehouse, Martin reviewed his presentation materials one more time. The supplier portfolio looked professional. The contract templates were comprehensive. The quality assurance framework sounded legitimate. Everything was ready. Except he had thirty-eight dollars in his account, a judgment pending enforcement, and no backup plan if the Texas deal collapsed. Martin's phone rang. Rebecca. "David Chen's lawyer called me asking about the loan I gave you three years ago," Rebecca said. "She wanted to know if you'd made any payments and whether I was expecting repayment. What's going on?" "They're trying to identify assets for collection purposes. The loan probably qualifies as a debt they can use to demonstrate insolvency or something." "Are you filing for bankruptcy?" "I was going to. Then I got a meeting with a department store chain in Texas that might generate enough commission to pay everything off. I'm flying to Dallas tomorrow." Rebecca was quiet. Martin could hear her breathing but she wasn't saying anything. "You bought a plane ticket with what money?" Rebecca asked. "I had four hundred fifty from a commission that finally processed. The ticket was four-twelve." "So you spent your last money on a flight to a meeting that might not produce anything." "The meeting could generate twenty thousand in commission. That pays off the judgment and covers my debts with enough left over to actually run the platform properly." "Or the meeting produces nothing and you've spent your last money on airfare while a judgment gets enforced against whatever's left in your account." Martin walked to his warehouse window. The parking lot was mostly empty now. Evening darkness made everything look the same. "I need one week," Martin said. "If this deal closes, everything works out. If it doesn't, I'll file for bankruptcy and deal with the consequences." "You always say things will work out. Every single time. And then they don't." "This is different. The retailer contacted me. They have a specific budget allocated. They want to launch in six weeks. This isn't me chasing a lead that might go nowhere." Rebecca made the sound that was either a laugh or a sigh. "I hope you're right. But I'm not lending you any more money if this collapses." She hung up. Martin returned to his laptop and opened his financial spreadsheet. The Texas deal projected at two hundred thousand in order value would generate twenty thousand in commission. Even if only half the projected volume materialized, ten thousand would still cover the judgment. But the timeline was problematic. Patricia wanted to launch by mid-January, which was six weeks away. Manufacturers would need deposit payments to begin production. Retailers would need contract assurances. Everything would need to move faster than Martin's previous orders had moved. And underneath all of it was the reality that David Chen's company could attach his bank account tomorrow and eliminate his ability to operate before the Texas deal even had a chance to close. Martin's phone showed 9:15 PM. He needed to sleep before tomorrow's flight but his mind was running calculations that all led nowhere useful. He lay down on the warehouse floor near the sunlit wall where it was slightly warmer during the day but offered no advantage at night. The concrete was cold. He didn't care. Thursday morning arrived with Martin waking at 5:30 AM to his phone alarm. He checked his email. Nothing from Patricia Hernandez or Jennifer Marks or David Chen. Just automated notifications and spam. His checking account balance showed thirty-eight dollars. No attachment orders had been filed yet. The money was still there. Martin drove to a grocery store and bought bread and peanut butter for six dollars and thirty-two cents. His account balance dropped to thirty-one dollars and sixty-eight cents. He ate two sandwiches in his car while reviewing the presentation materials on his laptop. The supplier portfolio still looked professional. The contract templates were comprehensive. Everything was ready. At noon, Martin received an email from Patricia Hernandez. She'd reviewed the supplier portfolio and was impressed with the manufacturer diversity and production capabilities. Friday's meeting would focus on three specific product categories: handwoven textiles, ceramic dinnerware, and custom woodwork. Could Martin bring detailed specifications and pricing for those categories? Martin spent the afternoon compiling additional documentation for the three focus categories. He contacted manufacturers in each area asking for detailed product specifications and volume pricing structures. Most responded within a few hours with the requested information. By 4 PM he had comprehensive packages for all three categories. The textile manufacturers could produce table linens, throws, and decorative pieces at wholesale prices ranging from twenty to sixty dollars per unit. The ceramic manufacturers offered dinnerware sets, serving pieces, and decorative items from thirty to ninety dollars per unit. The woodwork manufacturers specialized in cutting boards, serving trays, and decorative boxes from fifteen to forty-five dollars per unit. If Lone Star Department Stores ordered even moderate volumes across all three categories, the commission total could easily exceed twenty thousand dollars. Martin compiled everything into an updated presentation folder and emailed it to Patricia as supplementary material for Friday's meeting. She responded within thirty minutes thanking him for the additional details and confirming she'd see him at ten AM in Richardson. Martin's flight departed in two hours and forty-five minutes. He needed to drive to the airport, park, check in, and get through security. The drive alone would take forty minutes in traffic. He closed his laptop and grabbed his duffel bag. The warehouse looked the same as always. Dusty floors, broken heating, crack in the ceiling. If the Texas deal collapsed, he probably wouldn't be coming back here. The lease would terminate for non-payment and the landlord would auction off whatever equipment remained. Martin locked the warehouse door and drove toward the airport. Traffic was moderate. He arrived with an hour and twenty minutes before departure. Parking cost twenty-eight dollars for two days. Martin paid with his debit card. His checking account balance dropped to three dollars and sixty-eight cents. Inside the terminal, he went through security and found his gate. The departure board showed the flight on time. Boarding would begin in forty-five minutes. Martin sat in a gate area chair and opened his laptop. He reviewed the presentation materials one final time. Everything looked ready. Whether it would convince Patricia Hernandez to commit two hundred thousand dollars to a platform run by someone with pending judgments and zero track record remained unclear. His phone buzzed. Email from Jennifer Marks' associate attorney. The message explained that Martin's request for a seven-day extension had been reviewed and denied. David Chen's company would proceed with enforcing the judgment according to standard collection procedures. Bank account garnishment orders had been filed and should process within three to five business days. Martin closed the email. Three to five business days meant the garnishment would probably hit while he was still in Dallas trying to close the department store deal. His three dollars and sixty-eight cents would disappear and he wouldn't be able to access any commission payments even if the deal succeeded. But there was nothing to do about it now. The flight was boarding in thirty minutes. The meeting was tomorrow morning. The entire platform's survival depended on the next twenty-four hours. Martin's phone showed a boarding notification. Zone 3 would begin in ten minutes. He was in Zone 4. He gathered his duffel bag and stood near the gate area. Other passengers were lining up. Families with children, business travelers with roller bags, college students with backpacks. Normal people going normal places for normal reasons. Martin was going to Dallas with three dollars and sixty-eight cents in his account to pitch a department store chain on a platform that had collapsed under escrow violations and judgment defaults. If the meeting went poorly, he'd fly home Saturday morning to a garnished bank account and inevitable bankruptcy. But if the meeting went well, twenty thousand in commission would solve everything. The judgment would get paid. The debts would get cleared. The platform would have actual runway to operate properly. The gate agent announced Zone 4 boarding. Martin walked down the jetway and found his seat near the back of the plane. Window seat, which was fine. He didn't need to get up during the flight. The plane filled with passengers. A middle-aged woman sat in the middle seat next to him. She smiled politely and Martin nodded back. The safety demonstration played on overhead screens. Martin ignored it and looked out the window at the tarmac. Workers were loading bags into the cargo hold. Everything moved with efficient routine. The plane pushed back from the gate at 6:52 PM. Seven minutes late but still within acceptable parameters. The captain announced flight time of two hours and forty minutes with arrival in Dallas around 10:30 PM local time. Martin closed his eyes and tried to calculate probable outcomes. If Patricia committed to even fifty thousand in initial orders, the commission would be five thousand. That would cover the judgment with some buffer for operating expenses. If she committed to the full two hundred thousand over six months, everything would work. But there were too many variables. Manufacturer production capacity, retailer quality standards, delivery timelines, payment structures. Any of them could derail the deal. The plane accelerated down the runway and lifted off. Martin watched the city shrink below through his window. Lights spread across the landscape in organized patterns. He'd made this same kind of gamble dozens of times over forty years. Spending last money on a potential opportunity that might produce everything or nothing. The pattern never changed. The outcomes rarely improved. But this time there was actual interest from an actual retailer with an actual budget. That was more concrete than most of his previous attempts had ever achieved. The flight attendants came through offering drinks. Martin declined. He had three dollars and sixty-eight cents in his account. Spending six dollars on airplane alcohol wasn't an option. The woman in the middle seat ordered tomato juice and asked Martin if he was traveling for business or pleasure. "Business," Martin said. "What kind of business?" "I run a platform connecting manufacturers with retailers. Meeting with a department store chain tomorrow about bulk orders." The woman nodded politely. "Sounds interesting. I hope it goes well." "Thanks." She returned to her magazine and Martin looked back out the window. The plane had reached cruising altitude. Darkness made it impossible to see much beyond scattered lights below. Martin opened his laptop and reviewed the presentation materials again. The supplier portfolio, the contract templates, the quality assurance framework. Everything was ready. Tomorrow at ten AM he'd walk into Lone Star Department Stores' headquarters and pitch Patricia Hernandez on why his platform was worth two hundred thousand dollars in orders. Either the pitch would work and generate twenty thousand in commission that solved everything, or it would fail and he'd fly home Saturday to garnished accounts and inevitable bankruptcy. The plane descended toward Dallas two hours and thirty-seven minutes later. Martin's phone showed 10:27 PM local time. He'd booked the cheapest hotel he could find near Richardson for sixty-eight dollars per night. That would get charged to his credit card since his checking account couldn't cover it. The plane landed and taxied to the gate. Martin waited while other passengers gathered their belongings and filed off. Eventually his row emptied and he grabbed his duffel bag. Inside the terminal, he followed signs toward ground transportation. The hotel offered a free shuttle that ran every thirty minutes. Martin waited near the pickup area with other passengers. The shuttle arrived at 11:05 PM. Martin climbed in and gave the driver his hotel name. The drive took fifteen minutes through mostly empty highways. The hotel was a basic chain property near a highway interchange. Martin checked in at the front desk and took his room key. Third floor, room 314. Inside the room, Martin dropped his duffel bag and sat on the bed. The meeting was in ten hours and forty-five minutes. He needed to sleep but his mind was running through probable questions and optimal responses. He set his phone alarm for 7 AM and lay down without changing clothes. The bed was moderately comfortable. Better than the warehouse floor. Martin stared at the ceiling and thought about the forty years that had led to this moment. Lying in a cheap hotel room in Dallas with three dollars in his account, preparing to pitch a department store chain on a platform that was collapsing under judgment enforcement and bankruptcy threats. If someone had told his twenty-five-year-old self that this was where he'd be at fifty-eight, he probably wouldn't have believed it. But here he was anyway. The alarm would go off in seven hours and thirty-two minutes. Then he'd shower, review his materials one final time, and drive to Richardson for the meeting that would determine whether the platform survived or joined the list of failures spanning four decades. Martin closed his eyes and waited for sleep that didn't come easily.