Chapter 5 - THE FEDERAL AUDIT
“Guards! Remove her! Tackle her! Someone take those papers!” Adrian screamed, his voice cracking with sheer, hysterical panic as he lunged toward Mia.
Before Adrian could take two steps, the heavy oak doors at the back of the grand ballroom flew open with a deafening crash.
Half a dozen men in dark suits and windbreakers bearing bold yellow IRS-CI (Criminal Investigation) and FBI insignias strode into the room, led by a tall, stern-looking woman holding a clipboard.
“Adrian Brooks?” the lead federal agent called out, her voice cutting through the shrieks and gasps of the terrified wedding guests.
Adrian froze, his hands trembling as he stared at the federal agents closing in on the dais. “I... I’m Adrian Brooks. What is the meaning of this? This is a private event! I demand to speak to my attorneys—”
“Mr. Brooks, you are being served with a federal search and seizure warrant for your primary residence, corporate headquarters, and subsidiary accounts tied to Apex Global Logistics,” the agent announced crisply, flashing her badge. “You are also named in a multi-count federal indictment for corporate embezzlement, wire fraud, international money laundering, and obstruction of justice.”
Cameras flashed furiously from the press corps stationed outside the media tent, who had caught wind of the commotion and were now swarming the open doors of the ballroom.
Celeste let out a piercing shriek, clutching her stomach and collapsing backward into the arms of a horrified bridesmaid. “My baby! My stress! Call an ambulance!” Nobody moved to help her; the guests were too busy backing away as if she carried a plague.
Adrian turned toward Mia, his eyes wide with a mixture of hatred, betrayal, and pathetic desperation. “You... you planned this. You set this whole thing up from the beginning!”
“No, Adrian,” Mia said, stepping down from the dais and buttoning her trench coat with cold, surgical precision. “I simply handed the authorities the evidence you were too arrogant to realize you were leaving behind.”
She walked toward the grand exit, parting the sea of stunned socialites who stared at her not with pity, but with a terrifying, reverent awe.
Just as she reached the double doors, she paused and looked back over her shoulder one last time.
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“Oh, and Adrian?” Mia called out, her voice echoing clearly across the silent hall. “Don't bother calling my lawyer. I’m already filing for total seizure of all remaining corporate assets under the fraudulent conveyance statutes to secure my daughter’s trust fund.”
Without waiting for his response, Mia pushed open the doors and stepped out into the crisp autumn sunlight.
