CHAPTER 3: THE RAID AT MIDNIGHT
The heavy oak front doors shuddered under a series of massive, coordinated strikes from outside before bursting inward with a deafening metallic crash. Half a dozen heavily armed federal marshals and local police officers swarmed the luxurious living room in a heartbeat.
"Nobody move! Stay right where you are!" the lead tactical officer commanded, his voice echoing off the vaulted ceilings as laser sights swept across the imported Persian rugs.
Victoria let out a piercing, high-pitched scream, stumbling backward until she hit the wet bar and knocked over a crystal decanter of scotch. "You can't do this! Do you know who my husband is?! We belong on the board of directors!" she sobbed hysterically.
The officer didn't even blink at her aristocratic screaming, stepping past her to secure the perimeter with practiced military efficiency. He flashed a federal arrest warrant directly into the face of a trembling estate manager cowering near the hallway.
Chloe stood up slowly from her chair, her minimalist outfit rustling softly as she straightened her cuffs with icy precision. She didn't look at Victoria with anger or triumph; she looked at her with chilling, emotionless indifference.
The lawyer stepped beside Chloe, holding out a thick leather binder filled with federal grand jury indictments and asset forfeiture writs. "The forensic audit completed this morning confirms over twelve million dollars in fraudulent asset transfers," the lawyer announced formally.
Victoria’s designer heels clicked frantically against the marble as she tried to bolt toward the side exit. Two federal agents moved with lightning speed, blocking her path and snapping heavy steel handcuffs around her wrists with a sharp, brutal click.
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"Get your hands off me! You filthy peasants have no idea who you're messing with!" Victoria shrieked, kicking and thrashing as she was dragged across the very floor she had ordered Chloe to scrub just hours earlier.
Chloe walked slowly toward the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, watching the red and blue lights strobe across the manicured lawn. The storm she had engineered for years had finally arrived, washing away the filth of her father's second wife in a single night.
