Chapter 13: The Blackmail File
The twin-engine plane rumbled loudly as it climbed above the snow-capped peaks of the Adirondacks, banking hard toward the west. In the cramped cabin, the air smelled of aviation fuel and old leather. Marcus sat across from Sarah, pressing a blood-soaked bandage hard against his shoulder, his teeth clenched against the pain.
Sarah held Maya close, keeping her eyes fixed on the satellite phone in her lap. She scrolled through David's downloaded cloud storage, digging past corporate spreadsheets and legal drafts until she found a hidden, encrypted folder labeled Vance & Sons Holdings.
"Mark, look at this," Sarah said, handing him the phone.
Marcus leaned in, squinting at the screen. The folder contained a digital treasure trove: offshore shell corporation statements, wire transfer receipts linking Vance family assets to political bribery, and email chains proving decades of corporate embezzlement and tax evasion. It was the entire foundation of the Vance empire—built on stolen money and criminal concealment.
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"This isn't just leverage," Marcus whispered, a dark, victorious chuckle escaping his lips. "This is a nuclear bomb. If we hand this to the FBI and the SEC, Eleanor and David won't just lose custody. They’re going away for twenty years."
"They wanted to destroy us," Sarah said, her voice completely devoid of fear, replaced by a quiet, absolute resolve. "Now we destroy them."
