Chapter 4 - The Federal Interruption
The silence in the eleventh-floor boardroom was absolute, broken only by the distant hum of the city’s ventilation system. The lead federal agent, a tall woman with sharp silver hair and an expression carved from granite, stepped up to the table. She didn't look at Emma, nor did she acknowledge Victoria, who was now backing slowly toward the exit. Her gaze was locked entirely on Julian.
“Julian Vance?” the agent asked, her voice calm and authoritative. “I am Special Agent Miller with the federal financial crimes division. We have a warrant for your arrest on charges of wire fraud, securities manipulation, and the illegal transfer of corporate assets across state lines.”
Julian stumbled backward, his hip hitting the edge of the mahogany table. He looked from the agent to Emma, his eyes wide with a mixture of betrayal and sheer disbelief.
“This is a setup,” Julian choked out, his voice cracking. He pointed a shaking finger at Emma. “She did this. She forged those documents. She manipulated the accounts to frame me!”
Agent Miller didn't blink. She signaled to the agents behind her, who stepped forward and placed cold steel handcuffs around Julian’s wrists with practiced efficiency. The sharp click of the cuffs echoed off the glass walls, a definitive sound that shattered whatever illusion of control Julian had left.
“Mr. Vance, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law,” Agent Miller recited monotonously, reading him his rights while guiding him toward the door.
As they walked past Victoria near the doorway, Julian snapped. “Tell them, Victoria! Tell them you have the server logs!”
Victoria pressed her back against the wall, her face pale as paper, refusing to make eye contact with him. “I don't know what you're talking about, Julian,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “I was just an employee.”
Emma watched the procession without a single smile of triumph. She closed her manila folder, sliding the papers back inside with deliberate slowness. As the agents pulled Julian out into the hallway, he twisted his head back, glaring at Emma with a look of pure, unadulterated venom.
May you like
“You think you’ve won?” Julian shouted down the empty corridor before the elevator doors slid shut. “Wait until you see what’s waiting in your personal safe at home.”
---
