Chapter 22 - The Silent Alarm
|
In the basement command center of the FBI’s regional cyber-crimes division, a red light began flashing violently on the main terminal.
Simultaneously, Marcus Vance’s phone erupted in a loud, obnoxious ringtone. He was sitting in the Whitmore Manor kitchen with Evelyn and Noah, drinking terrible, lukewarm coffee at three in the morning.
Marcus snatched the phone, listening intently for ten agonizing seconds. A massive, relieved grin broke across his tired face.
"She took it," Marcus announced, hanging up the phone. "The greedy fool actually took the bait. Vanessa just attempted to wire the ten million dollars from the honeypot account directly to an IP address heavily associated with her past aliases."
Evelyn let out a long, shuddering breath, burying her face in her hands. The crushing weight of the past few weeks finally began to lift.
"Is she under arrest?" Noah asked, leaning forward eagerly.
"The FBI traced the access ping directly to a luxury penthouse downtown," Marcus explained, pulling up a map on his tablet. "Because the funds she attempted to steal belong to a registered non-profit, and because she used a computer while on federal parole for wire fraud, they don't even need a warrant to breach the door. Tactical teams are moving in as we speak."
"What about Arthur Sterling?" Evelyn asked, looking up.
"Sterling's fingerprints are metaphorically all over this. He received the codes directly from Noah. The FBI will scoop him up on conspiracy charges by breakfast," Marcus said confidently. "The smear campaign is completely dead. Their consortium is going to dissolve into a massive federal indictment."
Noah leaned back in his chair, staring at the dark window. He had faced down the ghosts of his family’s past and won. He had protected his mother and the foundation without compromising a single ounce of his integrity.
"It's over," Noah whispered.
Evelyn moved her chair closer to his and wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders.
May you like
"You did it, Noah," Evelyn said, tears of absolute joy and relief streaming down her face. "You saved us. You saved Daniel's legacy."
"We saved it together," Noah corrected gently, resting his head against her shoulder. "Now, let's watch the morning news."
