Chapter 10: The Defense Crumbles
The afternoon session of the tribunal resumed with the sharp rap of Prosecutor Hayes’s gavel. The defense table looked isolated and bleak. Richard Sterling’s high-priced civilian legal team had spent the lunch hour flipping through the Treasury printouts, and their initial arrogance had evaporated into nervous whispers and frantic page-turning.
Hayes adjusted his glasses and looked down at the lead defense attorney. “Counsel, does the defense wish to cross-examine Colonel Sterling regarding the Zurich asset transfers?”
The attorney stood up, straightening his tie with a hesitant motion. “Your Honor, in light of the overwhelming volume of new financial disclosures introduced by the prosecution, the defense requests a seventy-two-hour recess to review the ledger entries.”
“Denied,” Hayes stated flatly. “These ledgers were subpoenaed under Section 4 of the Vanguard Act, a statute your client was intimately familiar with when he drafted the initial logistics contracts. You may proceed with your cross-examination or rest your case.”
Richard grabbed his lawyer’s arm, whispering harshly in his ear. The attorney flinched, sat back down, and shook his head. Richard stood up himself, leaning heavily against the mahogany partition. His silver hair was disheveled, his tuxedo jacket hopelessly wrinkled.
“You’re destroying a pillar of American industry over bureaucratic technicalities,” Richard demanded, his voice echoing off the high stone walls. “I kept the supply lines running when the entire coalition was on the verge of logistical collapse!”
“You kept your bank accounts growing while American soldiers ran out of ammunition,” Hayes countered, his voice steady and cold. “Sit down, Mr. Sterling.”
Evelyn stepped back up to the witness podium. She did not raise her voice. She did not need to. The entire courtroom leaned in to catch every syllable.
“Richard,” Evelyn said, her tone clinical and detached, as if addressing a hostile combatant across an interrogation table. “You taught me how to read a balance sheet before I was old enough to drive. You taught me that every asset has a cost, and every liability must be pruned.”
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Richard glared at her, his eyes burning with helpless rage. “You were my daughter. You owed me your loyalty.”
“I owed my loyalty to the Constitution and the men who wore the flag,” Evelyn replied, her gaze unwavering. “You traded them for shipping rights. And today, the ledger is closed.”
