Chapter 37 - The Falling Dominoes
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Six months after the trial, life had settled into a quiet, beautiful rhythm.
My father was serving a reduced five-year sentence at a minimum-security federal facility, respected by the guards and inmates alike for his total cooperation in dismantling the syndicate. Every weekend, Chloe and I visited him, bringing homemade baked goods and drawings she made in school.
Victoria Sterling and Arthur Vance were serving life sentences in separate maximum-security facilities, their assets completely seized and redistributed to victims of domestic violence and human trafficking through a federal restitution fund I helped manage.
I opened my new legal advocacy office in downtown Chicago—The Hayes Foundation for Financial Literacy and Protection. We offered free legal representation and financial forensic counseling to women escaping abusive relationships and corporate extortion.
"You have a visitor, Audrey," my new office assistant announced, stepping into my sunlit corner office.
I looked up from my desk to see Agent Elena walking in, holding two cups of takeout coffee and a thick yellow envelope.
"Agent Elena," I smiled, standing up to greet her. "Or should I say, Special Agent in Charge Elena?"
"Don't start," Elena laughed, handing me a coffee. "The promotion comes with twice the paperwork and half the sleep."
She set the yellow envelope down on my desk. My smile faded slightly as I noticed the official seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation on the clasp.
May you like
"What's this?" I asked, looking at her.
"A formal letter of commendation from the Director," Elena explained. "And... a piece of evidence that was recovered during the final sweep of Victoria Sterling's offshore vault in Zurich last week."
