Chapter 14 - The Tables TurnThe audio played loudly across the ballroom speakers:
“Just play along, Julian. Once we crash Vance Global from the inside, you keep the house, I take the shipping lanes, and Elena ends up penniless. If she catches on, we pin the whole embezzlement scheme on her husband.”
The room erupted into absolute chaos. Reporters shouted over one another, thrusting cameras toward Victor, who was now sweating profusely under the stage lights.
"This... this is an illegal wiretap! It’s fabricated!" Victor roared, lunging toward the laptop.
Two federal marshals stepped out from the wings of the stage, instantly blocking his path and flashing their badges.
"Victor Vance-Sterling, you are under federal arrest for securities fraud, corporate espionage, and conspiracy to commit financial extortion," the lead marshal announced, snapping steel handcuffs onto Victor’s wrists.
As Victor was dragged off the stage, screaming obscenities and cursing my name, the flashbulbs blinded the room once more.
I turned back to the microphone, adjusting it slightly.
May you like
"Vance Global has always operated with absolute integrity and absolute transparency," I said calmly to the cameras. "To anyone who believes they can use deception, betrayal, or manipulation to tear down what generations have built: remember that the house always wins. And the bill is always due."
I stepped down from the podium, leaving the press corps in a frenzy.
