Chapter 10
Ten minutes later, Senator Sterling was still speaking to reporters when his chief of staff suddenly rushed onto the stage.
The staffer's face was chalk-white as he whispered frantically into the politician's ear, handed him a printed document, and stepped back.
Senator Sterling’s speech stopped mid-sentence, his jaw dropping open as his eyes scanned the paper.
The Federal Election Commission and the Department of Justice had just unsealed a twenty-four-count indictment against him for bribery and high treason.
Live news cameras captured the exact moment the powerful politician's knees buckled behind the state capitol podium.
Two FBI agents stepped onto the stage, placing Senator Sterling under arrest in front of fifty national television crews.
In his Houston office, Mateo closed the broadcast, turning his attention to a framed photo sitting on his desk.
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The photo showed a younger Mateo standing proudly beside his late father outside their modest neighborhood auto repair shop.
"We finally finished it, Dad," Mateo whispered softly, touching the glass frame with his thumb.
