Chapter 9: The Rat
Loyalty has a price, and Jessica’s was incredibly low. Later that evening, Clara sat in the dimly lit VIP booth of an exclusive downtown lounge. Across from her sat Jessica, nervously clutching her textured snake-print purse—the same one she had carried at her ruined wedding.
"Julian is hiding the real money," Jessica whispered, sliding a sleek silver flash drive across the table. "He siphoned campaign funds and corporate reserves into three offshore shell companies. The emails, the routing numbers, the forged signatures—it’s all on there."
Clara picked up the drive, inspecting it in the ambient light. "And what do you want for selling out your brother?"
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"Protection," Jessica pleaded, her smug superiority entirely gone. "And a trust fund. Just enough to maintain my lifestyle. I know you're going to put him in prison. Just leave me out of it."
Clara slipped the drive into her pocket. She slid a single manila envelope across the table containing a modest, heavily restricted trust agreement. "Sign it and disappear," Clara commanded. Jessica grabbed the pen, sealing her brother's fate without a second thought.
