Chapter 11 - THE BENEFACTOR’S SHADOW
Spring arrived in the city, bringing blooming cherry blossoms and a fresh sense of renewal to the Sterling estate. But inside Arthur’s private study, the atmosphere remained as cold and calculated as a winter storm.
Arthur sat behind his massive mahogany desk, his eyes locked onto a confidential dossier delivered by Interpol just an hour ago. The file detailed the financial audit of Thorne Capital’s international holdings—accounts that had supposedly been completely frozen and seized by federal authorities.
"That's impossible," Arthur muttered under his breath, flipping a page.
The door creaked open, and Marcus Vance stepped inside, looking paler than usual. He didn't wait to be invited; he walked straight up to the desk and laid down a single, certified banking statement.
"You found it, didn't you?" Marcus asked quietly.
"Twenty million dollars," Arthur said, his voice dropping an octave as a dangerous glint flashed in his eyes. "Right before Julian Thorne was sent to maximum security, he transferred a final, massive lump sum out of the country. Not to an offshore shell company in the Caymans. To a private trust in Geneva."
"A trust managed by an anonymous benefactor," Marcus added, pulling out a secondary surveillance printout. "We traced the IP address used to authorize the transfer. It wasn't Julian. And it wasn't Victoria."
Arthur stared at the name printed at the bottom of the wire confirmation. His blood ran cold.
The Vanguard Foundation.
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"Who runs Vanguard?" Arthur demanded, slamming his fist gently against the wood.
"That's the terrifying part," Marcus swallowed hard. "It's a holding entity. And according to Swiss corporate registry records, its primary shareholder isn't dead, and they aren't in prison. They own five percent of Sterling Industries' voting stock... bought legally through a proxy network three days ago."
