Chapter 13 - The Fourth Man in the Cellar
The silence that fell over the Obsidian Tower penthouse was absolute.
Even the hum of the exterior climate control units seemed to fade away.
Vincent did not lower his gun, but his finger relaxed slightly on the trigger guard as his dark eyes locked onto Viktor Vance’s scarred, distorted face.
“What did you just say?” Vincent asked, his voice chillingly low.
“You heard me, boy,” Viktor rasped, dropping the iron fireplace poker onto the Persian rug with a heavy thud.
He staggered over to the marble bar, grabbed an unbroken crystal tumbler, and poured himself two fingers of neat bourbon with trembling, scarred fingers.
“Julian was the face of the family,” Viktor continued, taking a harsh swallow of the liquor.
“He had the charm, he had the political connections, and he had the ambition to pave over every square inch of this city.”
“But Julian didn't have the brains to engineer a multi-million-dollar maritime corporate buyout without leaving a paper trail a mile wide.”
Vivienne stepped forward, her hands shaking slightly as she gripped the handle of her concealed pistol.
“Who was the fourth man, Uncle Viktor?” she demanded, her voice cutting through the smoke-filled air.
Viktor turned his bloodshot eyes toward her.
The resemblance between him and her late father was undeniable beneath the ruined flesh.
“His name is Arthur Sterling,” Viktor said softly.
Vincent’s eyes narrowed instantly.
“Harold Sterling’s father?”
“The very same,” Viktor nodded, a bitter smile twisting his scarred lips.
“Senior was the senior partner at Sterling & Croft Maritime Law.”
“He was the architect who drafted the fake municipal forfeiture trusts while our house was still warm from the embers.”
Viktor slammed his glass down onto the marble counter.
“Seventeen years ago, I caught Senior in our private study copying the master port codes into a leather ledger.”
“That’s when the oil lamps were knocked over.”
“That’s when the hallway went up in a wall of orange fire.”
Viktor lifted his left arm, exposing the thick, horrific burn grafts running from his wrist to his shoulder.
“I dragged my brother’s safe files out through the courtyard, but the roof collapsed before I could reach the nursery.”
“I spent seventeen years in the underground rail tunnels, building a case against Sterling & Croft brick by brick.”
“And today, while you two were making grand speeches on the courthouse steps...”
Viktor pointed a shaking finger toward the floor-to-ceiling smart monitor on the obsidian wall.
“Senior just filed papers to transfer the entire remaining corporate assets of the Hale Empire into an offshore shell company in the Cayman Islands.”
Vincent turned sharply toward the smart monitor.
With three rapid keystrokes, he pulled up the active municipal ledger feeds.
The screen flashed red.
$140,000,000 in liquid maritime operating capital had just been scrubbed from the local accounts and routed through four shell corporations, all ultimately controlled by Sterling & Croft.
“He’s cleaning the vaults,” Marcus said, stepping up to the screen with a dark scowl.
“If those funds clear the offshore clearinghouse by noon, the port will be bankrupt before sunset, even with the master key.”
Vincent’s jaw locked.
A terrifying, cold fury radiated from his broad shoulders.
He holstered his pistol beneath his arm, turned to Marcus, and gave an order that brooked no argument.
“Lock down the airspace over the harbor.”
“Nobody leaves this city by boat, plane, or train.”
He turned his gaze back to Vivienne.
Her face was no longer pale with shock.
It was set in the cold, unyielding mask of a true Vance heir.
“Where is Arthur Senior right now?” Vivienne asked Viktor.
Viktor wiped his mouth with his sleeve, a dark, dangerous gleam returning to his eyes.
“He’s hosting a private celebratory dinner at the private yacht club on Pier 14,” Viktor grinned.
“To toast his retirement.”
May you like
Vincent reached into his coat and pulled out a heavy spare set of brass knuckles, sliding them over his right hand with a sharp metallic clink.
“Then let's go help him celebrate.”
