Chapter 16
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Armed with the explosive evidence from Elaine’s hard drive, Marcus did not immediately go to the board of directors. He knew that Julian had likely bought the loyalty of several key members, and presenting the evidence internally could lead to a cover-up or a prolonged corporate civil war.
Instead, Marcus picked up his private phone and called an old acquaintance: Thomas Sterling, a notoriously ruthless federal prosecutor who specialized in corporate fraud and embezzlement.
"Marcus Thorne," Thomas answered, sounding mildly surprised. "I read you retired to the countryside to play house. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"I have a case for you, Thomas. A career-making case," Marcus said, pacing the length of his study. "Wire fraud, corporate embezzlement, and conspiracy to commit extortion. The target is Julian Vance."
There was a pause on the line. "Julian Vance is the acting CEO of your own company, Marcus. You are asking me to investigate your own house."
"I am asking you to clean it," Marcus corrected him coldly. "Julian funneled millions of dollars of shareholder money through offshore shell companies to fund a personal vendetta. I have the IP logs, the bank transfer receipts, and the encrypted emails proving it."
"If you hand me that evidence, Marcus, I will have to launch a full-scale federal raid on Thorne Industries," Thomas warned. "The stock will plummet. The PR fallout will be catastrophic. Are you prepared to take that hit?"
"Thorne Industries survived for decades because it was built on integrity," Marcus stated firmly. "I would rather see the stock hit rock bottom and rebuild it from the ashes than let a parasite like Julian sit in my chair. I will send my legal team to your office with the hard drive tomorrow morning."
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"Understood," Thomas said, his voice dropping into a professional, predatory tone. "Give me forty-eight hours to verify the digital signatures and secure the warrants. Don't let Julian know we are coming."
Marcus hung up the phone. He looked out the window, watching the sun begin to set over the estate. He was about to burn down a significant portion of the empire he had spent his life building, but as he heard the faint, joyful sound of Maya laughing from the nursery upstairs, he knew it was the only right choice.
