Chapter 8 - The Fall Guy
I felt the blood completely drain from my face.
“That’s impossible,” I stammered, stepping away from the agent.
“I didn't authorize a transfer to the Caymans.”
The FBI agent grabbed my arms roughly, spinning me around and snapping handcuffs onto my wrists.
“The digital footprint traces directly to your IP address, Ms. Callahan,” the agent stated coldly.
The cameras in the lobby went into an absolute frenzy.
Flashes blinded me as I was paraded past my father and my stepbrother, both of whom were staring at me in shock.
I looked frantically toward Elias Vance and Vanessa.
They weren't looking at me with triumph.
They were looking at me with the exact same utter confusion I felt.
They hadn't set me up for the theft.
They were genuinely panicked that their fifty million dollars had vanished.
If Vanessa and Elias hadn't framed me, and I hadn't routed the money to the Caymans... who did?
The agents shoved me into the back of an armored transport vehicle alongside Arthur and Ryan.
The doors slammed shut, plunging us into the dim, claustrophobic interior.
Arthur looked at me, his eyes filled with a terrifying mixture of anger and disbelief.
“You stole fifty million dollars from the people trying to buy my company?” Arthur demanded, his voice echoing in the metal box.
“I didn't steal anything!” I yelled back, struggling against the cuffs.
“I was trying to stop Vanessa from stealing it!”
Ryan sniveled in the corner, his designer suit wrinkled and pathetic.
“We’re all going to prison because of you, Emily,” Ryan sobbed.
I ignored him, my mind racing through the code Leo and I had written the night before.
The ghost protocol was flawless.
It was designed to route the money to Hartwell’s accounts.
The only way it could have been redirected to the Caymans was if someone had intercepted the code while we were compiling it.
Someone with direct access to Leo’s workstation.
Leo.
My quiet, socially awkward cybersecurity architect had rewritten the payload command while I was distracted.
He had framed me for the theft and vanished with fifty million dollars.
The transport vehicle arrived at the federal courthouse in downtown Dallas.
We were processed, stripped of our personal belongings, and thrown into separate holding cells.
I sat on the cold concrete bench, staring at the steel bars.
My entire life was completely destroyed.
My father’s empire was gone, my company was ruined, and I was facing decades in federal prison for a crime I didn't commit.
Three hours later, a guard approached my cell.
“Callahan,” the guard grunted, unlocking the heavy door.
“Your lawyer is here.”
I frowned.
I hadn't been allowed to make a phone call yet. I didn't have a defense attorney on retainer for federal grand larceny.
The guard escorted me to a small, windowless interrogation room.
Sitting across the metal table was a woman I had never seen before.
She wore a sharp, gray suit and carried a sleek leather briefcase.
“Ms. Callahan,” the woman said smoothly, gesturing for me to sit down.
“My name is Sarah Jenkins.”
“I am a senior partner at Vanguard Legal.”
I sat down cautiously, resting my cuffed hands on the table.
“I didn't hire you,” I stated flatly.
Sarah offered a thin, professional smile.
“I know.”
“My services were retained on your behalf by a very powerful third party.”
“Who?” I demanded.
Sarah opened her briefcase and pulled out a single sheet of paper.
She slid it across the table.
It was a perfectly forged immunity agreement, signed and stamped by a federal judge.
“The third party has secured your immediate release, full immunity from all charges, and the complete restoration of Hartwell Supply Chain Solutions,” Sarah explained calmly.
I stared at the document in absolute disbelief.
“Why would anyone do this for me?” I whispered.
Sarah packed her briefcase and stood up.
“Because the person who hired me believes you are the only one capable of running Callahan Freight after Arthur goes to prison.”
May you like
She leaned across the table, her voice dropping to a serious whisper.
“And because he felt slightly guilty about stealing the fifty million dollars.”
