Chapter 17 - The Judge’s Ultimatum
"You can't hide this forever, Sterling," Arthur said, standing his ground as the guards closed in. "The audio files are already backed up on three independent cloud servers programmed to release publicly if I don't check in by noon."
Judge Sterling sighed, folding his hands neatly on the desk. "A clever precaution, Arthur. But you forget who appoints the federal magistrates, and who controls the digital firewall infrastructure of this state. Within ten minutes, your cloud servers will be flagged as classified national security threats, and your data will be permanently wiped."
Leo stepped forward from behind his father, his eyes flashing with a fierce, mature defiance that belonged to someone twice his age. "You're afraid of us," Leo said clearly. "You're afraid because the whole world is going to hear what you did to my grandfather."
Judge Sterling’s polite smile faltered for a fraction of a second, a flicker of genuine irritation crossing his face. "Children in this family should learn to stay quiet in the dark, boy. It’s a survival trait you clearly failed to master."
"He’s not in the dark anymore, Judge," a sharp, familiar voice echoed from the rear double doors.
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Judge Sterling’s head whipped around. The heavy doors swung wide open, revealing U.S. Marshal Vance flanked by a full tactical squad of federal agents holding federal arrest warrants.
"Judge Thomas Sterling, you are under federal arrest for treason, judicial corruption, and conspiracy to commit murder," Marshal Vance announced, stepping into the room with his badge held high.
