Chapter 6 - The Trap Springs ShutVictoria stopped a few feet away, her eyes glistening with theatrical tears. She reached out to touch Richard’s arm, playing the role of the devoted, traumatized bride-to-be to absolute perfection.
"Don't touch me," Richard said.
His voice was like a slab of falling granite.
Victoria froze. Her hand hovered in the air. Her tearful expression flickered for a fraction of a second, replaced by a flash of genuine confusion. "Richard? What... what are you talking about? Look at what she did to the boys! Look at their clothes!"
"You locked them in the panic room," Richard said, turning to face her fully. The height difference between them suddenly felt like a towering mountain. His eyes were pitch-black, boring straight into her soul. "You pushed Noah down the stairs. You terrified my children, and you thought you could frame Emily for theft while you looted my accounts."
Victoria’s breath hitched. For a microsecond, the color drained entirely from her face.
Then, she recovered with terrifying speed. She let out a fragile, wounded laugh, looking around at the police officers. "He’s in shock, Captain! Look at him! The stress of the break-in has completely unhinged him. She stole my mother’s diamond Rolex! It was right inside her suitcase!"
"Was it?" Emily stepped forward, her voice calm, clear, and deadly.
She reached down to the pavement where her suitcase had tipped over. She picked up a small, sleek electronic device no larger than a credit card—a portable forensic signal analyzer.
"You planted a tracking beacon inside the Rolex box, Victoria," Emily said, holding up the device. The tiny LED screen flashed a steady, blinking green light. "And your own phone is currently broadcasting the master cryptographic key linked to the offshore shell company named Vanguard Holdings LLC—registered under your maiden name, Victoria Sterling."
Victoria’s face went chalk white. The lace handkerchief slipped from her trembling fingers and fluttered to the ground.
"That’s... that’s a lie!" Victoria shrieked, her composed socialite mask shattering completely into jagged pieces. "She’s a hacker! She planted that! Captain, arrest her! Arrest her right now!"
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Captain Vance looked back and forth between the billionaire tech mogul, the furious housekeeper holding a high-tech forensic device, and the screaming socialite whose hands were now shaking uncontrollably.
"Mr. Hawthorne..." Captain Vance swallowed hard. "What is your official order?"
