Chapter 13 - Standing Her Ground
Two NYPD cruisers and an unmarked state vehicle were parked outside the high-rise. Emma didn't wait for the limousine to fully stop; she threw the door open and sprinted through the slush, ignoring the freezing wind biting through her silk gown.
She burst into the lobby just as two officers and a social worker stepped out of the elevator, carrying a portable baby bassinet. Beside them, the nanny was in tears, pleading with building security.
"Stop!" Emma’s voice shattered the marble foyer like a whip.
The officers turned, hand resting on their utility belts. "Ma'am, please step back. Are you Emma Sterling?"
"I am," Emma declared, stepping directly between the social worker and the street exit. "Step away from my children."
"Mrs. Sterling, we have an emergency protection order issued by the family court regarding child endangerment and maternal incapacity," the social worker stated, holding up a manila folder. "You need to accompany us to Bellevue for evaluation."
Clara and Arthur burst through the revolving doors behind her, Clara thrusting her bar card and federal filings forward. "Officer, stand down! That warrant was procured through fraudulent testimony by Julian Sterling, who was arrested forty minutes ago by federal authorities for grand larceny and wire fraud! Here is the federal arrest record and the emergency stay signed by Judge Bennett!"
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The lead officer looked at the federal paperwork, then at Arthur Vance, whose face was well known in every precinct commissioner's office in the city. The tension in the lobby hung by a razor’s edge as the officer picked up his radio.
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