flash
Alexander pulled a sleek, heavy titanium card from his inner pocket and tossed it onto the ivory tablecloth. It clattered against the crystal water glass, sliding to a halt inches from the restored silver cuff link box. / Chapter 26 / 30

Chapter 26 - The Trap is SprungRichard Vance let out a low, chilling laugh that reverberated through the soundproofed office.

"You really are as brilliant as my son says you are, Erin," Richard said, leaning back against his desk and crossing his arms. "Yes. Alexander was a weak, greedy idiot. He thought he was playing the game, but he was just my shield. When you used his black card and triggered those alerts, you almost exposed my entire offshore network."

"So you framed Alexander completely," Erin realized, her voice dropping. "You gave my legal team the evidence against him, sacrificing your own top partner to save yourself and keep me satisfied so I wouldn't dig deeper into Vanguard’s primary ledgers."

"Exactly," Richard smirked. "I gave you your revenge on a silver platter. I let you bankrupt him, disgrace him, and take his assets. You got your justice, I kept my empire. It was a perfect transaction."

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"Until I accepted the judicial board seat," Erin said. "Because the first thing the board does is gain subpoena power over private investment firms like Vanguard."

"And that," Richard said, reaching into his desk drawer and pulling out a slender black flash drive, "is why you should have taken your millions, retired to Wrightsville Beach, and kept your head down. Sophia was a desperate instrument, but I have dozens of ways to make a woman disappear."

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