Chapter 5 - Betrayal
It wasn't the police who burst into the library. It was a group of three men in dark, tailored suits. They didn't carry badges; they carried silenced pistols.
The leader of the men, a ruthless fixer named Julian Cross, looked at Victoria with a cold, predatory smile. "Going somewhere, Mrs. Montgomery?"
Victoria froze, her hand hovering over the keypad of the hidden safe. "Julian. I didn't expect you until tomorrow."
"The boss doesn't like loose ends," Julian said, stepping into the room. His men immediately moved to block the exits. "You promised that the forensic accountant you brought into this family wouldn't be an issue. You said she was just a dumb girl from the outer boroughs. Now, she has federal agents digging into accounts that belong to people far more powerful than you."
"We can fix it!" Ethan begged, dropping to his knees. "We have the physical ledgers right here! We can burn them! The feds don't have the decryption keys for the offshore accounts yet!"
Julian looked down at Ethan with pure disgust. "You're weak, Ethan. Just like your father was. The boss has decided that the Montgomery family is no longer an asset. You've become a liability."
Julian raised his weapon, aiming it directly at Ethan’s chest.
"Wait!" Victoria screamed, stepping in front of her son. Not out of love, but out of a desperate need to maintain control. "If you kill us, the automated system Emily set up will automatically release the decryption keys to the Department of Justice! I am the only one who can stop it!"
It was a blatant lie, a desperate gamble to buy time.
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Through the hidden audio feed, Emily listened to everything from her hospital room. Her heart hammered against her cast. She knew Julian Cross. He was the fix-it man for a massive, multi-national syndicate that used Montgomery Enterprises to launder cartel money.
"Clara," Emily whispered into her headset to Agent Vance, who was parked down the street from the townhouse. "Move in now. They're going to execute them."
