Chapter 17
Marcus sank into his leather executive chair, tears of sheer defeat rolling down his wrinkled cheeks.
"What... what are you going to do to me?" Marcus whimpered, clutching his heart. "Just kill me and get it over with!"
Ethan pulled a thick manila folder from his jacket, tossing it onto the desk in front of Marcus.
"Death is too easy for you, Marcus," Ethan said softly.
"Inside that folder are federal indictments signed by the United States Attorney General."
"Every asset you own—your estates, your offshore funds, your corporate shares—has been frozen under the RICO Act."
"Your remaining family members are being arrested across the country right now."
"You will spend the rest of your natural life in a maximum-security federal prison, wearing an orange jumpsuit, knowing that your empire was erased from history because of what you did to my child."
Marcus stared at the documents, his face morphing into a mask of complete, overwhelming horror.
For a man who valued power and prestige above human life, total public disgrace and complete financial ruin were a fate far worse than death.
Outside the estate mansion, the loud wail of police sirens and federal escort vehicles cut through the night.
Red and blue emergency lights flashed through the tall library windows, illuminating the falling snow.
FBI SWAT teams surrounded the house, bullhorns echoing across the front lawn: "Marcus Vance, this is the FBI! Step outside with your hands up!"
May you like
Ethan looked at Marcus one last time, turning his back on the broken old man.
He walked out through the rear terrace doors into the dark forest, vanishing into the night before federal agents breached the front entrance.
