Chapter 4 - The Arrest in the TowerBefore Derek could recover from his father's strike, the heavy double doors at the rear of the boardroom opened once more.
Stepping into the room, flanked by two senior detectives from the Major Crimes Division and three Federal Marshals, was Detective Ethan Cole.
Detective Cole walked straight up the length of the mahogany table, pulling a certified felony arrest warrant from his inner jacket pocket.
"Derek Vance?" Detective Cole asked flatly.
Derek backed toward the floor-to-ceiling glass windows, his breath coming in fast, panicked hitches. "What... what is this?! My uncle is the circuit court judge!"
"Your uncle was suspended by the State Judicial Conduct Board two hours ago, Mr. Vance," Detective Cole revealed deadpan. "We have an arrest warrant issued by the Federal District Court for Aggravated Domestic Assault, Unlawful Restraint, Tampering with Evidence, and Intentional Poisoning using a Controlled Substance."
"NO! GET AWAY FROM ME!" Derek screamed, thrashing wildly as two broad-shouldered marshals lunged forward.
They grabbed Derek by his arms, forcing his face flat against the cold mahogany table, pinning his body down with effortless precision.
CLICK. CLICK.
The heavy steel handcuffs locked around Derek’s wrists behind his back.
"ARGH! DAD! MOM! HELP ME!" Derek shrieked, tears and snot streaming down his pale face as his cheek was pressed against the polished wood. "TELL THEM TO LET ME GO!"
Roger Vance collapsed into his leather chair, burying his face in his trembling hands, weeping quietly as his son was hoisted up by his lapels.
Bertha thrashed on the floorboards, screaming hysterically as the marshals escorted Derek out of the boardroom in chains, surrounded by news cameras that had gathered in the lobby downstairs.
I stood up from the Chairman's chair, pulling my dark wool coat around my shoulders, looking down at Roger and Bertha with a quiet, weightless indifference.
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"Your commercial property foreclosures begin at noon tomorrow, Roger," I informed him cleanly. "Your factory leases are revoked, and your bank lines are frozen. By the end of the week, the Vance name will exist only in court records."
I turned my back on them forever, stepping out through the high brass doors into the cool afternoon air.
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