Chapter 5 - The Federal ShieldThe federal building in downtown was a towering monolith of gray granite and reinforced glass, surrounded by security barriers that felt reassuringly solid after the vulnerability of my apartment.
We were escorted to the eighth floor, where Sarah Vance was waiting for us. The assistant US attorney was a sharp, fifty-ish woman with short gray hair and a navy suit that looked like armor. Her office was buried under boxes of financial files, all bearing the red stamp of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
"Sit," Sarah said, gesturing to two leather chairs. She didn't offer us coffee or pleasantries. She went straight to her computer, pulling up the files from my flash drive.
"You've given us a masterpiece, Emily," Sarah said, her eyes shining with a cold, professional satisfaction. "The transactions on Em-Ben Logistics tie directly into a money laundering scheme we’ve been tracking through the port of Houston. Your father wasn't just hiding consulting fees. He was moving capital for the Valdez cartel."
The word hung in the air, heavy and terrifying. Cartel.
"I didn't know," I whispered, my hands growing cold. "I thought... I thought it was just tax evasion. I thought he was trying to hide his profits from the IRS."
"Richard Bennett is a greedy man, but he's also a coward," Sarah said, leaning forward. "The cartel approached him five years ago when his shipping lines were on the verge of bankruptcy. He took their money to save his company, and then he realized he couldn't get out. The only way he could keep himself safe was to create a buffer—a fall guy. And he chose you."
"His own daughter," Caroline said, her voice trembling with indignation. "How could a parent do that?"
"By convincing himself that he was doing her a favor," I said, my voice empty. "He always told me that since he gave me life, he owned it. He thought he was just reclaiming his investment."
"The county court just issued the warrant your father’s lawyers requested," Sarah said, tapping her pen against the desk. "They’re accusing you of grand larceny—claiming you transferred four million dollars from Em-Ben Logistics to an offshore account in your name last night."
"That’s a lie!" I cried. "I don't even have access to those accounts!"
"I know it's a lie, and so does the federal judge who just signed our protective order," Sarah said, offering me a small, rare smile. "But until we can unseal the federal indictment against your father, the local police are technically obligated to act on that warrant. If they find you outside this building, they will arrest you."
"So what do we do?" Caroline asked.
"We keep her here," Sarah said. "In the federal witness suite on the tenth floor. Your father’s lawyers can’t touch you here, Emily. But we need you to do one more thing for us. We need you to go on the record. A formal deposition, under oath, detailing every single interaction you’ve had with your father regarding Em-Ben Logistics over the last four years."
May you like
I looked at Caroline, who nodded encouragingly. Then I looked at Sarah Vance.
"Get the stenographer," I said. "I have twenty-two years of history to tell you."
