Chapter 10 - The Forensic Luminol Reveal in the Foyer
Back in the grand dining room, Special Agent David Vance opened his tactical briefcase and pulled out a stack of financial warrants authorized by Magistrate Hayes.
David laid three binders on the table directly in front of General Raymond Caldwell.
“General Caldwell,” David said. “While executing the search warrant on Mr. Sterling’s corporate laptop, our cyber division discovered that the assault on Chloe Vance this morning was not merely a domestic altercation. It was the culmination of a massive corporate espionage and embezzlement scheme.”
Marcus’s eyes widened in sheer, unadulterated terror. “David... don't... please...”
“What are you talking about, Agent Vance?” General Caldwell demanded, flipping open the first binder.
“For the past eighteen months,” David explained, “Marcus Sterling has been embezzling funds from Caldwell Defense’s Naval Logistics Development budget. He siphoned $4.2 million through twelve shell corporations registered in Delaware under the name of his mistress, Tiffany Ross.”
Tiffany shrieked. “He told me those were consulting fees!”
“When Chloe discovered the altered accounting ledgers on Marcus’s home desktop last night,” David continued, “Marcus realized that as a certified structural engineer with security clearance, Chloe had a legal obligation to report the fraud to the Department of Defense Inspector General. He and his mother attacked her to prevent her from whistleblowing, intending to stage her disappearance as an accidental hypothermic death in an unsafe part of town.”
General Caldwell slammed the binder shut with a force that rattled every crystal glass on the table.
He turned slowly, towering over Marcus Sterling. The retired three-star general looked like he was about to rip Marcus apart with his bare hands.
“You stole from my company,” Caldwell spoke, his voice vibrating with lethal intensity. “You used my firm’s defense contracts to buy penthouses for your mistress. And you attempted to murder a brilliant young engineer whose mind was the backbone of our naval contracts.”
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Caldwell leaned down until his nose was two inches from Marcus’s face.
“You are not only fired, Marcus. I will personally ensure that every resource of Caldwell Defense is placed at the disposal of the United States Attorney to see you spend the rest of your natural life in a federal penitentiary.”
