Chapter 10 - Confronting the Shark|
Taking Maya out of school was a temporary fix, a desperate band-aid, not a permanent solution. Sitting in our living room with the curtains drawn tight against the afternoon sun, the silence of the house pressing in on me, I realized that merely waiting for the next threat to arrive was slowly driving me insane. I needed to take the offensive. I left Maya happily watching a movie under the watchful, armed eye of Detective Reynolds' trusted partner, a no-nonsense female officer named Ramirez, and drove downtown. My destination was the sleek, towering glass building that housed the incredibly expensive law offices of Vance & Associates.
Arthur Vance was Richard Sterling's lead defense attorney. He was the man who had orchestrated the plea deal, a smooth-talking, morally bankrupt shark who specialized in keeping billionaires out of state prison and burying their victims in legal paperwork. I marched past the protesting, flustered secretary and threw open the heavy mahogany doors of Vance's expansive corner office without knocking.
"Mr. Vance is in a meeting—" the secretary yelled from behind me, but I ignored her entirely.
Vance looked up from a stack of legal briefs, waving the secretary off with a flick of his perfectly manicured hand. He leaned back in his plush leather chair, a sickeningly polite, condescending smile spreading slowly across his face.
"Elena," he purred, steepling his fingers. "To what do I owe the profound pleasure of this unannounced visit? I thought our business concluded months ago when my client so graciously settled your civil suit."
"Cut the theatrical act, Arthur," I snapped, marching right up to his massive desk and slamming my hands down on the polished wood. "Tell Sterling his little intimidation tactics aren't going to work on me anymore. Taking pictures of my daughter? Calling my private phone with voice changers? If he thinks he can terrorize us into leaving the city or dropping our guard, he's dead wrong."
Vance didn't flinch. His smile remained perfectly frozen in place, a facade of professional courtesy, but his eyes turned instantly cold, dark, and calculating.
"I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about, Elena," Vance said smoothly, his voice devoid of any genuine emotion. "My client is currently complying with all the stringent terms of his federal probation. He is focusing entirely on his philanthropy and his personal rehabilitation. If you are receiving threats, I highly suggest you contact the local authorities and file a report."
May you like
He leaned forward, dropping his voice to a menacing, quiet whisper that sent a shiver down my spine.
"But let me offer you some free legal advice, off the record. When you poke a sleeping bear, you shouldn't act surprised when it wakes up and bites your arm off. Have a good day, Elena. Please see yourself out."
