Chapter 6 - The Federal Informant
I froze, clutching my phone tightly in my shaking hand.
No one knew what hotel I was staying at tonight.
I crept toward the door and peered through the tiny glass peephole.
Standing in the hallway was a man wearing a sharp suit and a tired expression.
He held up a gold federal badge that caught the dim hallway light.
I slowly unlocked the door, keeping the heavy security chain firmly attached.
"My name is Agent Vance," the man said quietly.
"I have been investigating your sister's financial crimes for over a year."
I unlatched the chain and let him step carefully inside.
He looked at my sleeping boy on the bed and immediately lowered his voice.
"We intercepted Kara's phone call to you."
"They are planning to ambush you at the courthouse tomorrow morning."
Agent Vance explained that the judge they bragged about was deeply corrupt.
He was actively on Kara's payroll and was prepared to strip my custody away.
"Why are you telling me this now?" I asked, my heart pounding fiercely.
"Because we need the life insurance documents you found at the park," he replied.
"But we cannot arrest them tomorrow."
"We need the judge to officially accept the fraudulent paperwork on the public record to prove the bribery."
He was asking me to walk into a rigged courtroom and risk losing my child.
"I will not let them take Elliot," I stated fiercely.
"You won't have to," Vance promised, handing me a hidden recording device.
"You just need to stall them for forty-eight hours while we freeze their offshore accounts."
I agreed to his dangerous plan, feeling a fierce fire ignite inside my chest.
The next morning, I dressed in a sharp suit and held Elliot's hand tightly.
We walked through the heavy double doors of the imposing courthouse.
Denise and Kara were already sitting at the plaintiff's table, looking incredibly smug.
The corrupt judge banged his wooden gavel and glared directly at me.
"I am ready to rule on this emergency custody transfer," the judge announced quickly.
May you like
Before I could object, child protective services agents walked into the room.
They walked straight toward me and reached for Elliot's hand.
