Chapter 24 - The Ghost of the PastI stared at the parchment, the words burning themselves into my retina.
"Arthur," Frank murmured, reading over my shoulder. "I thought your father's estate was fully audited and settled back when you took over the holding company."
"So did I," I said, my voice dangerously low. "Or at least, that's what the legal accountants told me when I was twenty-two."
"Could it be a fake?" Frank suggested, though his tone lacked conviction. "Someone trying to rattle you after the Vanguard victory?"
"No," I shook my head, walking slowly toward the floor-to-ceiling windows and staring out at the Manhattan skyline. "The handwriting is real. The seal is real. And the psychological signature... that's my father's style to the letter. He always planted contingency traps to ensure that even from the grave, he could control the board."
"What are your orders?" Frank asked, his professional instincts kicking in instantly. "Do we secure a court order to intercept the Zurich deposit box?"
"No courts," I said firmly, turning around to face him. "If we involve international courts, the Zurich depository will trigger an automatic public disclosure protocol. My father designed that box to act as a nuclear option—if anyone tries to seize it legally without the master biometric key, it leaks every document directly to the global press."
"Which means..."
"Which means I have to go to Zurich myself," I said, reaching for my suit jacket. "Quietly. Off the grid."
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Frank frowned, stepping forward. "Daniel, that's a massive risk. You just defeated a global syndicate. Vance's associates, or worse, whatever hidden networks your father left behind, could be waiting for you."
"If I stay here and ignore it, a ticking time bomb is sitting in a Swiss vault waiting to destroy everything I've built—and everyone I've sworn to protect," I said, buttoning my jacket. "Book a private charter to Zurich immediately. I leave within the hour."
