Chapter 2 - THE HIDDEN JOURNALS OF ARTHUR STERLING
The silence in the dining room became suffocating,
thick with the sudden realization that my father had left behind far more than just properties and bank accounts.
"You're bluffing,"
Victoria hissed,
stepping forward and clutching the edge of the mahogany table with white-knuckled grip.
"Arthur never kept any journals about his business affairs,
and everything he owned was signed over to me years ago."
"That is where you made your fatal miscalculation,
Mother,"
I replied calmly,
reaching into the deep pocket of my tailored black trousers.
I pulled out a small,
encrypted digital tablet,
its screen glowing with a secure military-grade cryptographic seal.
"Dad knew you and Richard were draining his accounts to bail out Julian's failing businesses."
"He spent the last three years of his life documenting every single fraudulent transfer,
every forged signature,
and every unauthorized asset diversion."
Arthur Vance leaned forward,
his professional composure cracking entirely as he stared at the glowing device.
"Where did you get that device,
Colonel?"
he demanded,
his voice rising in panic.
"From a secure safety deposit box in Boston that my father opened under my name seventy-two hours before his heart attack,"
I answered smoothly.
"A box that can only be accessed by biometric verification from a direct blood relative holding a federal security clearance."
Richard sneered,
though his eyes darted nervously toward the front doors.
"A bunch of electronic files don't mean a damn thing in a probate court!"
"They don't have to hold up in a probate court,
Richard,"
I said,
a cold smile touching the corners of my lips.
"Because these files are currently being downloaded onto the secure servers of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's white-collar crime division."
The five attorneys froze,
their briefcases suddenly looking less like tools of conquest and more like evidence lockers.
"You didn't just call us here to sign a waiver,
did you?"
asked the youngest lawyer at the table,
his voice shaking with raw terror.
"No,"
May you like
I replied softly.
"I called you here so federal investigators could identify every legal accomplice who assisted in the systematic dismantling of my family's estate."
