Chapter 67
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The aftermath of the failed infiltration provided the exact leverage Noah needed to execute the final phase of his plan. While the local police—carefully vetted and loyal to the Whitmore legacy—carted the subdued mercenaries away to secure holding cells, Noah sat in his office with the secure federal line active.
On the massive digital monitor mounted on the wall, the stern, weathered face of FBI Director Hayes appeared.
"Noah," Hayes greeted, his voice echoing with seasoned authority. "I received the encrypted file drop from your team ten minutes ago. My cyber division is currently authenticating the ledgers, but based on a preliminary glance... this is the most massive trafficking operation I have seen in my entire career."
"It's all real, Director," Noah stated, leaning forward and resting his hands on his desk. "Elias Thorne is using Apex Horizons as a front. The proof of forced labor, illegal imprisonment, and defense contract fraud is entirely documented in those files. And as further proof of his desperation, he just sent a heavily armed mercenary team to assault my estate to retrieve the whistleblower."
Hayes’s eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. "He attacked the Whitmore campus? That is an act of profound arrogance."
"It was an act of a cornered man," Noah corrected. "He knows the ledger exists. If we don't move immediately, Thorne will begin liquidating the camps. He will destroy the evidence, and more importantly, he will make the children disappear to cover his tracks."
"I agree," Hayes nodded sharply. "We don't wait. I am mobilizing a multi-agency federal strike force. We will hit the Apex Horizons corporate headquarters in Manhattan, as well as the three primary 'campuses' listed in the ledger simultaneously. We move at dawn."
"I want to be there," Noah said, his voice leaving absolutely no room for debate. "When you breach the Alpha Campus, the one Julian escaped from. I want to be the one who walks through those doors."
Hayes hesitated, the protocol of a federal raid conflicting with his deep respect for the Whitmore legacy.
"You stay behind the tactical shield wall until the perimeter is secure, Noah," Hayes finally conceded. "But you can be there. Your father would have demanded the same thing."
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"Thank you, Director," Noah nodded.
He terminated the connection and stood up, looking out the bay window at the bronze statue of his father. The snow was beginning to melt, revealing the solid, unbreakable stone beneath. It was time to tear Elias Thorne's empire to the ground.
