Chapter 19
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While Alexander Sterling was being aggressively handcuffed in the marble lobby of the Vanguard-Vance tower, a very different kind of panic was unfolding in Palm Beach.
Victoria Vance stood in her opulent master bedroom, frantically throwing expensive jewelry and stacks of bearer bonds into a leather duffel bag. She had watched the live stock ticker on her television screen. When Vanguard-Vance stock suddenly skyrocketed and Sterling’s holding companies plummeted to zero, she knew immediately that the hostile takeover had failed spectacularly.
"He promised me," Victoria muttered frantically, zipping the heavy bag shut. "That arrogant fool promised me he could break Julian."
She grabbed her forged diplomatic passport and sprinted through the quiet, air-conditioned villa toward the private garage. She had a chartered seaplane waiting at a private marina twenty miles away, fueled and ready to fly her to a non-extradition country in South America.
She threw the duffel bag into the trunk of her Mercedes convertible and slammed her foot on the accelerator, tearing out of the gated community and onto the coastal highway. The humid Florida wind whipped her hair violently as she drove with reckless, desperate speed.
She could see the masts of the marina in the distance. Freedom was only three miles away.
Suddenly, a massive, armored black SUV pulled out from a side road, swerving violently to completely block the two-lane coastal highway.
Victoria screamed, slamming on her brakes. The Mercedes skidded wildly, the tires smoking against the hot asphalt, stopping mere inches from the heavy steel bumper of the SUV.
Before she could even reach for her phone, the doors of the SUV flew open. Four heavily armed men in tactical gear surrounded her convertible.
A tall man in a dark suit stepped out from behind the operatives. It was David, Julian’s head of cybersecurity and personal security liaison.
"Good afternoon, Victoria," David said coldly, stepping up to her window.
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"You can't do this! I have a flight to catch!" Victoria shrieked, clutching the steering wheel in sheer terror.
"Your flight has been canceled," David stated, pulling a federal arrest warrant from his jacket pocket. "Julian sends his regards. You broke the exile agreement, Victoria. And Julian doesn't give third chances."
