Chapter 6 - The Trap is Sprung
By 8:00 AM the following morning, the executive boardroom on the forty-second floor of Cross Meridian Logistics was packed with every senior director, legal counsel, and major stakeholder in the company. The atmosphere was suffocatingly tense. Marcus Vance sat at the head of the mahogany table, wearing an immaculate charcoal suit and a veneer of manufactured grief as he addressed the assembly. ""It is a tragedy, gentlemen,"" Marcus announced, dabbing a handkerchief at the corner of his dry eyes, ""that our beloved CEO, Declan Cross, lost his life in a tragic elevator accident late last night during the storm. As senior vice president, I have already contacted federal authorities to stabilize our asset holdings—""
The heavy oak doors of the boardroom swung open with a resounding crash. Declan Cross strode into the room. He was wearing a fresh black tailored suit, his shoulders squared, his posture radiating absolute, undisputed authority. Behind him walked Enzo and a team of federal marshals carrying thick binders of financial evidence. Marcus’s face turned an alarming shade of chalky white, his handkerchief slipping from his paralyzed fingers to land softly on the polished wood. ""Good morning, cousin,"" Declan said smoothly, his voice cutting through the silent room like a razor blade as he pulled out the chair at the head of the table and sat down. ""I hear you were just dividing up my estate.""
Marcus scrambled backward, his chair scraping loudly against the floor. ""Dante—I mean, Declan! You're... you survived..."" ""I'm remarkably difficult to kill, Marcus,"" Declan replied coldly, resting his hands flat on the table. At a subtle nod from Declan, I stepped forward from the back of the room, carrying the master financial ledger. I placed the certified audit reports directly in front of the lead federal prosecutor seated near the window. ""Mr. Vance has been systematically embezzling millions through offshore shell companies,"" I announced clearly, my voice ringing out across the silent room. ""Furthermore, digital forensics retrieved from his office terminal prove he coordinated last night's sabotage of the executive elevator in a direct attempt to assassinate Mr. Cross.""
