Chapter 5 - The Inside Man
The car door swung open, and the rushing wind hit my face.
We were traveling at fifty miles an hour down a busy commercial street.
I did not think about the pain.
I tucked my chin, crossed my arms, and threw myself out of the moving vehicle.
I hit the asphalt hard, tumbling violently across the rough pavement.
The silk of my wedding dress shredded, and my skin scraped against the concrete.
I rolled to a stop near the curb, gasping for air as sharp pain radiated through my ribs.
The black sedan screeched to a halt fifty yards down the road.
Miller jumped out of the car, his gun raised, scanning the street for me.
I crawled behind a parked delivery truck, hiding in the shadows of the alleyway.
Pedestrians were screaming and running in every direction, providing me with perfect cover.
I watched Miller angrily kick the tire of the sedan before getting back inside and speeding away.
I leaned against the brick wall of the alley, clutching my bruised ribs.
I had escaped, but I was completely alone, injured, and wearing a torn wedding dress.
I needed help, but I could not trust the police or the federal agents anymore.
Adrian had corrupted the entire investigation.
A sleek silver sports car suddenly pulled into the alley, blocking my exit.
The tinted window rolled down slowly.
Isabella Vale leaned over from the driver's seat and unlocked the passenger door.
"Get in before they circle back," Isabella commanded.
I hesitated for a second, unsure if the dead first wife was a friend or another enemy.
"You want to destroy Adrian, and I want to stay alive," she said impatiently.
"We have the same goal."
I climbed into the low leather seat, and she instantly floored the accelerator.
"How did you find me?" I asked, wiping blood from my scraped forehead.
Isabella smirked, tapping the dashboard monitor.
"I hacked the federal GPS system this morning."
"I have been tracking Agent Miller for months."
"I knew he was dirty the moment he was assigned to your case."
We drove out of the city limits, heading toward the dark, winding roads of the northern hills.
"Where are we going?" I asked nervously.
"We are going to get the real evidence," Isabella replied, her voice turning cold.
"The financial fraud you found is just child's play, Clara."
"Adrian is not just stealing from corporate investors."
"He has been laundering billions for the largest cartel in the hemisphere."
I stared at her in absolute shock.
"Cartel money?" I repeated, my blood running cold.
"If the cartel finds out he lost their money, they will kill his entire family."
Isabella nodded grimly.
"Exactly."
"But to prove it, we need the physical ledger."
"He keeps the original handwritten accounts hidden somewhere no federal agent can ever get a warrant to search."
She turned the car onto a private, unpaved road lined with massive iron gates.
"Where is it?" I asked.
Isabella parked the car and pointed through the windshield.
Looming in the moonlight was the sprawling, ancient cemetery of the Vale family estate.
"It is inside his father's crypt," Isabella said softly.
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"But there is a catch."
"The vault is sealed with a biometric lock programmed exclusively to Adrian's DNA."
