Chapter 5 - The Judas
The lodge was secure, but heavily damaged. Julian sat in the command center, a medic bandaging his shoulder.
“How did they find this place, Marcus?” Julian asked quietly, his eyes dark. “This coordinates are on an isolated server. Only my executive board has access in case of a corporate emergency.”
Marcus typed furiously on his laptop. “I’m running a trace on the IP handshake that pinged the server yesterday. Sir... the ping didn't come from an external hack.”
“It came from inside the company.”
“Yes. Specifically, from the private terminal of David Vance.”
Julian closed his eyes. David Vance. His Chief Financial Officer. The man who had mentored Julian after his father died, the man who had been a second father to him.
“David has been laundering Victor’s cartel money through our philanthropic shell companies,” Julian deduced, the pieces snapping together. “And when Elena realized the discrepancies ten months ago, David told Victor. That’s why Victor threatened her.”
Elena walked into the room, holding a sleeping Leo. She looked at the screens. “David was the one who told me you were in danger, Julian. He played the concerned friend. He manipulated me into leaving.”
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Julian stood up, a terrifying calm settling over him. It wasn't the heat of anger; it was the absolute zero of a predator about to strike.
“Marcus,” Julian said. “Get the jet ready. We’re going back to Chicago. It’s time to clean house.”
