Chapter 5 - THE TEN-SECOND DESTRUCTIONJudge Harrison flipped open the heavy portfolio. He didn't just glance at the top page; as a former federal prosecutor specializing in white-collar financial crimes, his eyes swept over the certified bank routing numbers, the cryptographic timestamps, and the tax evasion signatures with chilling expertise.
The courtroom was so quiet you could hear the faint scratching of Ethan’s colored pencil against his legal pad at the defendant's table.
Ten seconds passed.
Then twenty.
Judge Harrison slowly closed the portfolio, removed his reading glasses, and looked up at Adrian Voss with an expression of pure, unadulterated disgust.
“Mr. Vance,” the judge said quietly, his voice carrying an immense, crushing weight. “Is this the corporate stability you were boasting about five minutes ago?”
Marcus Vance slowly turned his head to look at his client, his face pale as death. “Mr. Voss... did you sign these asset transfers?”
“No! It’s forged! It’s all a lie!” Adrian screamed, lunging forward toward the podium, completely losing his composure in front of the packed gallery and clicking cameras. “She hacked me! She’s mentally unstable! She’s a manic depressive!”
“Mr. Voss, calm down or I will have the bailiffs remove you in cuffs,” Judge Harrison warned sharply. He looked back down at the file, then raised his gavel.
“Based on the irrefutable evidence of corporate fraud, asset stripping, and tax evasion presented by the respondent, this court hereby orders an immediate, unconditional freeze on all accounts, assets, properties, and subsidiaries belonging to Adrian Voss and Voss Meridian.”
Bang.
The gavel came down like the judgment of an executioner.
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“Furthermore,” the judge continued without missing a beat, “this court grants full, unrestricted custody of the minor child to the respondent, Mara Voss, along with an immediate restraining order preventing the petitioner from coming within five hundred feet of her or her son.”
Adrian stood frozen, his mouth half-open, staring blankly at the bench as his entire multi-billion-dollar empire evaporated into thin air before his eyes.
