Chapter 4: The House of Lies
The sound of sirens wailing in the distance broke the paralyzing silence over Sterling Manor. Within minutes, two paramedics burst through the heavy double oak doors, accompanied by two Connecticut State Troopers.
While the paramedics carefully stabilized Margaret, placing a neck brace on her and lifting her onto a stretcher, the state troopers moved toward Victoria.
"James! Tell them to stop!" Victoria shrieked as steel handcuffs clicked tightly around her manicured wrists. "I am your wife! You can't let them treat me like a criminal based on a glitchy camera!"
"It wasn't a glitch, Victoria," James said, standing up to his full height. His charcoal pinstripe suit was pristine, but his eyes were cold as ice. "It was the truth. The truth you’ve been hiding since the day you walked into my family’s life."
"Mr. Sterling," Officer Miller said, stepping forward with a notepad. "We have the footage backed up on secure servers courtesy of your security detail. Mrs. Victoria Sterling is being placed under arrest for attempted aggravated assault, elder abuse, and endangerment."
"Take her out of my sight," James commanded, turning his back on her completely as he walked alongside the stretcher carrying his mother.
As Victoria was dragged through the snow toward the flashing red and blue lights of the police cruiser, Marcus leaned into James’s side.
"There’s more, Mr. Sterling," Marcus whispered, holding up a tablet. "When I pulled the security logs from the master server, I found hidden file transfers routed from your personal workstation to an offshore account in the Cayman Islands. They were executed two hours ago using Victoria’s private encryption key."
James stopped near the arched window. The framed American flag sat quietly beside him, reflecting the flashing police lights outside.
"She wasn't just trying to throw my mother out," James realized, his jaw clenching. "She was cleaning out the family legacy before she fled."
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"She had help, sir," Marcus added grimly. "The transfers were authorized by someone inside Sterling Global Financial. Someone with executive access."
James stared at the snow falling heavily against the window pane. "Find out who. I want every single person involved in this bankrupt and behind bars by morning."
