Chapter 11 - The Phantom Node
Julian reached the reinforced steel doors of the service elevator. He punched a sequence into an encrypted wall-mounted keypad. The heavy doors began to slide open with a deep hydraulic groan.
""The account you routed forty billion dollars into wasn't a Vance holding,"" Julian explained, adjusting the cuffs of his cream suit. ""It was an automated escrow terminal controlled by the Federal Financial Crimes Network. You didn't steal my money, Elena. You just deposited the entire liquidity of the Eastern Syndicate directly into an open federal sting operation.""
Vincent Vance stepped through the dissipating steam, his assault rifle lowered, his eyes widening in horror as he understood the trap. ""The Rico warrant... he set it up to burn every boss on the coast.""
""Precisely,"" Julian smiled, stepping into the elevator. ""By five o’clock today, the Department of Justice will seize every asset bearing the Vance name. You will be hunted by every federal marshal and every betrayed cartel boss from Miami to Montreal. I will walk away clean as the confidential informant who delivered the biggest syndicate bust in American history.""
Chad looked up from his mother, his face pale. ""You set us all up from the beginning.""
""Of course,"" Julian shrugged. ""You were just the bait to get the Vance heir out of hiding. Goodbye, Elena. Enjoy your brief reign.""
The elevator doors began to slide shut.
Elena didn't fire at the reinforced glass. Instead, she turned to her father, her voice ringing out like a command: ""Father! The frequency jamming device from the vehicle!""
Vincent moved instantly, throwing a palm-sized military-grade disruptor across the platform. Elena caught it mid-air, dialed the primary bandwidth to the municipal grid, and slammed the magnetic base onto the high-voltage electrical conduit running alongside the elevator shaft.
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A blinding spark of blue electricity exploded across the wall. The service elevator shuddered, sparked, and ground to an agonizing halt, suspended twenty feet above the concrete floor.
Inside the glass-paneled shaft, Julian Thorne’s triumphant smile instantly vanished.
