Chapter 4 - The Final ConfessionBefore Julian could finish his sentence, the heavy library doors burst open.
Four armed guards loyal to Damian—men who had served under him for decades and had been cut off from Victor’s false emergency broadcasts—poured into the room, their weapons trained instantly on Victor and Julian.
"Secure them," Damian ordered without taking his eyes off the two traitors.
Victor lunged forward in a desperate attempt to grab a heavy brass letter opener from the desk, but one of Damian’s guards tackled him to the Persian rug, pinning his arms behind his back with brutal efficiency. A pair of heavy steel zip-ties clicked around Victor's wrists.
Julian didn't fight. He stood trembling against the bookshelf, his tailored suit jacket rumpled, his legal career and his life evaporating in a matter of seconds.
"You killed my brother," Martha said, walking slowly toward Julian until she stood just inches away from him. Her voice was terrifyingly calm. "You made it look like an accident, and then you tried to blow up the house to hide your tracks."
"Your brother was poking his nose where it didn't belong," Julian spat back, trying to maintain a shred of arrogance. "He discovered the port diversion funds. He was going to ruin us all."
Damian walked over, standing beside Martha. He pulled the small memory card from his pocket and held it up to the light.
"Every transaction, every encrypted communication, and every audio log of your planning sessions is currently uploading to a secure federal repository," Damian said, his voice chillingly absolute. "And a duplicate copy is sitting on the desk of every independent family boss from Boston to Miami."
Julian’s knees buckled. The federal repository meant federal indictments, RICO charges, and maximum-security prison with no hope of parole. The syndicates in New York wouldn't rescue them; they would eliminate them to cover their own tracks.
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"Take them down to the lower vault," Damian instructed the guards. "Lock them in separate cells. We'll let the justice system—and our associates—handle them tomorrow morning."
As the guards hauled Victor and Julian out of the library, the heavy doors closed behind them, leaving a profound, suffocating silence in the room.
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