Chapter 4 - The Corrupted ShieldEthan slammed his fist against the precinct desk, startling the bored desk sergeant who was lazily scrolling through his phone.
"I need to report an attempted murder at the Sterling Estate!" Ethan demanded, leaning over the counter. "My name is Ethan Vance. A woman named Eleanor Sterling shoved Claire Vance off a flight of stairs. There are fifty witnesses!"
The sergeant didn't even look up immediately. He slowly peeled his eyes away from the screen, offering Ethan a tired, bureaucratic sigh. "Mr. Vance, right? We received a call from the Sterling estate ten minutes ago. Legal counsel already filed a formal complaint against you and your associate for trespassing, breaking and entering, and harassment."
Ethan’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Are you out of your mind? She pushed a woman off a balcony! I have text messages, I have—"
"You have a criminal record for wire fraud from six years ago, Mr. Vance," the sergeant interrupted, his tone hardening. "And Mrs. Sterling is a primary donor to the police department’s benevolent fund. Unless you have hard, physical forensic evidence—not your word, not eyewitnesses who are currently too terrified to come forward—we can't touch her."
"They're taking bribes," a low voice whispered from the shadows beside the water cooler.
Ethan spun around. A young rookie officer, barely old enough to buy a drink, was nervously wiping down the coffee machine, his eyes darting toward the sergeant's station.
"What did you say?" Ethan stepped toward him.
"Keep your voice down," the rookie hissed, his hands shaking slightly. "Look, I pulled the dispatch logs from tonight. The call from the estate didn't come in after the incident. It was pre-scheduled. Automated. Eleanor Sterling knew you were coming. She knew Claire was going to fall before it even happened."
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Ethan’s breath caught in his throat. "How is that possible?"
"Because," the rookie whispered, sliding a flash drive across the counter into Ethan’s open palm, "Claire wasn't pushed because of a family dispute. She was pushed because she found out who really owns the Sterling empire. And it’s not Eleanor."
