Chapter 7 - The Final Audit
The heavy oak doors of the hotel suite slammed open with a deafening bang.
Four federal agents clad in dark tactical gear, carrying short-barreled carbines, flooded into the room. Behind them stood the Chief Deputy Prosecutor for the Eastern District, holding a thick stack of blue-bordered arrest warrants.
"Marcus Sterling!" the prosecutor shouted, his voice echoing off the glass walls. "Hands where we can see them! Step away from the laptops!"
Sterling stumbled backward against the window, his hands flying into the air, his eyes wild with terror. "This is a mistake! I am the Managing Director of Sovereign Capital! You have no authority—"
"We have an execution warrant signed by the Federal Appeals Court ten minutes ago, Mr. Sterling," the prosecutor interrupted coldly. "Based on three hundred gigabytes of encrypted financial records provided by Senior Auditor Julian Vance."
Two agents moved in swiftly, grabbing Sterling by his wrists, forcing him face-down onto the glass table, and snapping heavy steel handcuffs around his wrists.
As Sterling's face was pressed against the cold glass, he looked down through the rain-streaked window at the street below.
Julian Vance was standing under the awning of the flower shop across the square. He was calmly opening a large black umbrella, his three-piece suit immaculate, his face serene.
May you like
Julian raised his eyes, caught Sterling's terrified gaze through the glass, and gave him a slow, mocking nod of farewell.
Julian turned on his heel, stepping out into the cool evening rain as the blue and red lights of federal police cruisers flooded the square, sirens wailing in the distance.
