Chapter 6 - Gathering Wolves
Elias couldn't expose her alone. He needed leverage, and he needed a megaphone loud enough to cut through Sterling's billions. He started making phone calls to the people Clara had stepped on to reach the top.
His first stop was Marcus Vance—Clara’s estranged older brother, a brilliant but bitter forensic accountant whom Clara had cut out of her life because he "didn't fit her image." Marcus despised Sterling and held no love for his sister's newfound ruthlessness.
"She's taking the firm public," Elias told Marcus in a smoky dive bar. "The IPO is projected to raise two billion. But the flagship asset is structurally compromised. I have the proof."
Marcus looked over the heavily encrypted files Elias slid across the table. A slow, predatory smile spread across his face. "If this leaks the day of the IPO, the stock won't just tank. The SEC will freeze their assets. Sterling will face federal fraud charges for hiding it from investors."
"I don't care about Sterling," Elias said, his eyes dead and dark. "I want her to watch it burn."
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Marcus tapped the folder. "Then we need a journalist. Someone immune to Sterling's bribes."
Elias nodded. He already had someone in mind: Sarah Jenkins, an investigative reporter who had been fired from a major publication after Clara threatened them with a defamation lawsuit. The wolves were gathering.
