Chapter 17 - The Frozen Empire
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"Wait!" Vanessa suddenly shrieked, pushing her way to the front of the crowd as the officers began to escort Marcus toward the door. She wasn't looking at her husband; she was looking frantically at Samuel Price. "What about my accounts? What about the house? If he goes to jail, how am I supposed to pay for anything?"
Samuel Price sighed, a sound of profound exhaustion, and slowly opened the sixth and final manila folder on the desk.
"I am afraid that will no longer be your concern, Vanessa," Samuel said, pulling out a stack of court documents stamped with bright red official seals. "This final folder contains emergency federal court orders freezing every single asset connected to Marcus Ward."
Vanessa’s jaw dropped. "Freezing them? You can't do that!"
"We already did," Mr. Vance, the bank investigator, stated coldly. "Ms. Ward's forensic report successfully traced your father’s stolen money directly into Marcus's shell companies. We tracked the funds into the luxury downtown condominium, the two exotic sports cars, several volatile cryptocurrency wallets, and the failed restaurant venture."
Vanessa looked down at her hands, which were adorned with massive, glittering diamond rings.
"Assets purchased with stolen, laundered funds are subject to immediate federal seizure and must be returned to the victim's estate," Samuel explained flawlessly. "That includes the condominium you currently live in, the vehicles you drive, and the jewelry you are currently wearing, Vanessa. You are completely broke. In fact, you are millions of dollars in debt to this estate."
Vanessa let out a horrific, high-pitched wail. She collapsed onto a nearby armchair, sobbing hysterically as she frantically tried to pull the diamond rings off her fingers, as if doing so would magically erase her complicity in the theft.
Marcus twisted violently in the police officer's grip, completely ignoring his weeping wife. He looked directly at me, his eyes wide and pleading.
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"Elena, please!" Marcus begged, tears finally spilling down his cheeks. The arrogant facade was entirely gone, leaving only a terrified, pathetic little boy. "Tell them this is a misunderstanding! I'll pay it all back! I promise, I'll pay back every single cent! Just tell them to let me go!"
I stepped closer to him, stopping just out of his physical reach. I looked at the man who had tormented me my entire life, the man who had stolen from our dying father, the man who had punched me in a church.
