Chapter 16
Chapter 16: The Broadcast
By 8:00 A.M., the world had completely stopped.
We were sitting in a secure, fortified conference room at the local FBI field office, wrapped in heavy fleece blankets and nursing bitter black coffee. The massive flat-screen television on the wall was tuned to a global news network.
Every single channel was running the exact same story.
The ticker at the bottom of the screen glowed red with breaking news alerts.
"GLOBAL SYNDICATE EXPOSED: THOUSANDS OF TERABYTES OF CLASSIFIED LEDGERS LEAKED."
The news anchor, usually poised and perfectly rehearsed, looked visibly shaken as she read the incoming data off her prompter.
"...We are receiving confirmation from international authorities that the leaked documents contain definitive proof of systematic blackmail, money laundering, and targeted assassinations orchestrated by a shadow coalition of high-ranking judges, politicians, and corporate executives."
The screen flashed to live helicopter footage of a sprawling, gated estate in the Hamptons.
"That's Helena's compound," Claire whispered, leaning forward.
On the screen, dozens of armored black SUVs crashed through the wrought-iron gates of the estate. Armed federal agents flooded the manicured lawns.
Moments later, the camera zoomed in. Helena, the untouchable architect of our misery, was dragged out of the front doors in handcuffs. She was wearing a silk robe, her hair wild, screaming violently at the agents who shoved her into the back of a tactical vehicle. Her private jet had been grounded on the tarmac just twenty miles away. She hadn't been fast enough.
I took a sip of my coffee. The bitter taste grounded me.
"They caught her," my father said, sitting in the chair next to us. He looked at his phone, scrolling through a mountain of secure messages. "Sterling is in federal custody, undergoing surgery for his hand under heavy guard. Half of the syndicate's board members have already been arrested trying to cross international borders."
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Claire let out a long, shuddering sigh. The tension that had kept her spine rigidly straight for forty-eight hours finally collapsed. She rested her head on my shoulder.
"It's out," she murmured. "The truth is finally out."
