Chapter 9 - Victoria’s Desperate Fall
While her son was being booked into the federal detention center, Victoria Sinclair made a final, desperate attempt to save herself.
She had managed to slip out through the service entrance of the estate during the initial chaos, carrying a small leather case containing five million dollars in bearer bonds and her luxury diamond jewelry. She had hired a private helicopter to fly her from a local executive airfield to the Bahamas.
At 9:30 p.m., she arrived at the private hangar at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport, her designer sunglasses hiding her swollen, terrified eyes. The private jet was already on the tarmac, its engines whining as they prepared for takeoff.
"Hurry!" Victoria hissed at her private pilot. "Get this plane in the air right now!"
"I'm afraid this flight has been grounded, Mrs. Sinclair," a calm, deep voice echoed from the shadows of the hangar.
Victoria spun around, her heart stopping in her chest.
Standing in the hangar doorway, bathed in the dim amber security light, were four Federal Marshals, flanked by Special Agent David Vance.
"You can't touch me!" Victoria shrieked, clutching her jewelry case against her chest. "I have diplomatic immunity through my family's foundation! I am a philanthropist!"
"Your diplomatic passport was revoked three hours ago by the State Department, Victoria," David said, stepping forward and pulling a pair of handcuffs from his belt. "And your private jet is now the property of the United States Marshals Service under civil asset forfeiture."
"I did nothing wrong! I was just protecting my son!" she wept, as two female agents grabbed her arms, forcing her hands behind her back.
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"You pushed the father of the victim, you attempted to destroy video evidence of a felony assault, and you tried to flee the jurisdiction with stolen assets," David replied coldly. "You're facing fifteen years in a federal facility, Mrs. Sinclair. I suggest you get used to wearing orange instead of lavender silk."
As the steel cuffs clicked around her wrists, Victoria collapsed onto the cold concrete of the hangar, screaming in helpless fury.
