Chapter 18 - The Counter-Bribe
Julian chuckled, a dry, rattling sound that turned into a short coughing fit. He adjusted the blanket over his knees and pointed a liver-spotted finger at the briefcase.
"Open it," Julian ordered.
I unclasped the brass latches, clicking them open in the quiet conservatory. I turned the case around, revealing the thick, wax-sealed parchment of the Continental Rail Indenture. The gold leaf shimmered under the dim conservatory chandeliers.
Daniel's eyes widened in desperate lust. "Dad, take it! Give her the Swiss release! Call the liaison in Bern and make it stop! If they indict me, my bail is revoked. I'm going to a maximum-security penitentiary!"
"Be quiet, you cowardly parasite," Julian snarled, not even turning his head toward his son. He kept his predatory gaze locked on mine. "The Swiss release is in my safe, Natalie. It bears the notarized affidavit certifying that Daniel acted entirely without your knowledge, fully indemnifying Chloe and Oliver. The moment you sign the unconditional assignment of this indenture to the Julian Vance Living Trust, my attorney hits 'send' to the magistrate in Geneva. Your twins are safe. Daniel takes the federal fall alone, exactly as he deserves."
Daniel gasped, stumbling backward. "Dad? What did you just say? You promised me immunity! You swore you'd protect me if I brought Natalie here!"
Julian didn't blink. "You are useless, Daniel. You squandered fifty million dollars in Aspen on high-stakes private equity swaps and blonde escorts. You couldn't even control your own wife in your own house. You belong in a cage."
Hearing Julian discard his own son with the cold indifference of taking out the trash was horrifying, yet entirely expected.
"You see, Natalie?" Julian whispered, leaning forward over the table. "I am giving you everything you want. Daniel rots in prison. Your twins walk free. All you have to do is surrender the rail empire back to me."
I tilted my head, looking down at the legal assignment document sitting beside the indenture. I reached into my coat, pulled out a gold fountain pen, and uncapped it.
Daniel watched the pen, hyperventilating. Julian watched with triumphant, ravenous hunger.
"You almost had me, Julian," I said, resting the tip of the pen on the signature line. "Except for one detail you overlooked when you designed this little trap."
Julian’s eyes narrowed. "What detail?"
"You assumed Daniel forged those signatures alone," I replied, setting the pen down with a deliberate, echoing click. "You assumed Arthur Vance only pulled the transaction ledger from Geneva. But Arthur didn't just breach Banque Privée de Genève. He breached the server of your personal physician, Dr. Aris Thorne."
Julian’s face went dead white. The smug satisfaction drained from his pale skin, leaving him looking like an open corpse.
"What does my doctor have to do with this?" Julian croaked, his voice cracking.
May you like
"Six months ago, you were diagnosed with terminal vascular dementia," I said, pulling a folded set of medical records from my inner pocket and tossing them across the marble table. "By Illinois law, any power of attorney, any trust creation, and any legal indemnification signed by you after November fourteenth is null and void due to medical incapacitation. Which means, Julian... you don't own the Swiss release. You don't even own this house anymore."
***