Chapter 18 - Dawn of Reckoning
By morning, the news anchors across every major television network couldn't look away from their teleprompters.
“Breaking News: District Attorney Thomas Vance has been taken into federal custody following an unprecedented data leak detailing systemic corruption, illegal arms trafficking, and connections to international cartels operating out of the Manhattan port authority...”
Footage played on loop across the screen: federal agents storming the Tribeca penthouse, hauling boxes of evidence out into waiting vans, while Thomas—his suit rumpled, his face bruised and pale—was shoved into the back of an unmarked federal cruiser, shielding his face from the cameras.
Sitting in a quiet, anonymous diner in upstate New York, nursing a mug of black coffee, I watched the broadcast unfold on the small wall-mounted television.
Nora sat across from me, a folded copy of the New York Times open on the table, her photo splashed across page three alongside a detailed feature on the whistleblower who brought down both a billionaire syndicate and a corrupt prosecutor.
“They’re offering you a full pardon in exchange for your continued cooperation with the federal RICO task force,” Nora said quietly, reading the front-page subhead.
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“I don't need a pardon to know who I am anymore,” I replied, taking a slow sip of the bitter coffee. “The empire is gone. The money is seized. I’m starting from zero.”
“Zero isn't a bad place to start,” Nora said, sliding her coffee cup across the table to clink softly against mine. “At least the floor is clean.”
