You do the harder thing, or the more cowardly one, you're no longer sure there's a difference, and say nothing. No follow-up, no reminder, no reason for anyone at Blackridge to think of you at all. Fear left alone sometimes cools into caution instead of collapse, and Blackridge has lawyers whose whole job is to be more patient than panic. The silence stretches long enough that you understand, without anyone confirming it, that patience has won this round. Somewhere in the building, someone found the version of "no" that lawyers are comfortable signing. It lands less like a defeat than like a door closing quietly, somewhere out of sight. [[Blackridge Refuses|See if Blackridge pays or refuses to pay....]]