Chapter 5 - THE MEDIA STORMBy noon, the story had exploded past local news and dominated every major national network.
“MIRANDA VAIL OFFERS TEN-MILLION-DOLLAR REWARD FOR RETURN OF MISSING DAUGHTER LEAH.”
Screens across the country showed the billionaire CEO standing outside her glass-and-steel corporate headquarters in downtown Seattle, surrounded by cameras, her voice breaking with masterclass manipulation.
"If anyone is holding my baby," Miranda declared to the reporters, her eyes scanning the lenses with practiced brilliance, "please... I am begging you as a mother. Name your price. Return my daughter. Do not let politics or greed stand in the way of a mother’s heart."
In the back booth of the truck stop, Nolan watched the screen with a cold, hardened smile.
"She’s terrified," Jamie observed, watching the CEO's nervous blinking. "She doesn't care about Leah. She cares that Leah knows the truth."
"She cares about her empire," Nolan corrected quietly. "Vance-Vail Corp is merging with a global health conglomerate next week. If this drive goes public before the merger is finalized, the stock will crater, the board will oust her, and she’ll spend the rest of her life in a federal penitentiary."
Leah grabbed Nolan’s sleeve. "Are we going to give it to them? Will they hurt us if we do?"
Nolan looked down at the little girl who had crossed a city in the rain just to escape the monster who birthed her. He saw Emily’s gentle spirit reflected in Leah’s desperate need for safety.
"No, Leah," Nolan said, his voice carrying an absolute, unyielding resolve. "We aren't giving it to them. And we certainly aren't mailing it to the police—because half the local department is on Miranda Vail's payroll."
"Then what do we do?" Jamie asked.
May you like
Nolan pulled out his burner phone, dialing a number he thought he would never call again—an old investigative journalist friend from Emily's college days who had spent a decade trying to bust the healthcare corruption ring in the Pacific Northwest.
"We take her down," Nolan said softly. "On her own stage."
