"My legacy is bleeding out onto the pavement."
Maestro Valerius coughed violently into a white linen handkerchief. His frail body shook uncontrollably in the motorized wheelchair.
He pulled the fabric away from his mouth. Bright crimson blood stained the pristine white linen.
A collective gasp of horror echoed through the massive federal press hall. Hundreds of journalists aimed their camera lenses at the dying composer.
The CEO of Zenith Audio stepped to the wooden podium. He placed a comforting hand on the old man's frail shoulder.
"You see the physical toll of this massive theft," the Zenith CEO announced gravely. "Ryan Parker did not just steal sheet music. He stole the final, dying breaths of a national treasure."
The five other billionaire label executives nodded solemnly behin
