Chapter 5 - The Unearthing
We had less than eight hours.
"If we're going to the FBI, we need the actual financial files," Arthur said, his adrenaline finally taking over. "Richard keeps the true ledger on a secure local server at the firm’s downtown office. I have a keycard to the building, but my access code to that specific server room was revoked last week when Richard started getting suspicious of me."
"Then we break in," I said flatly.
"Elena, that's burglary—"
"It's asset preservation for a federal whistleblowing case," I countered. "And we aren't doing it alone."
I picked up my phone and called the one person in this town who hated Richard Vance more than we did: Sarah Jenkins. Sarah was a brilliant forensic accountant who had been fired from Vance Development two years ago under suspicious circumstances. Rumor had it she had found something she shouldn't have, and Richard had destroyed her reputation to keep her quiet.
Ten minutes later, Sarah was sitting at our kitchen table. When Kayla walked into the room, Sarah gasped, looking at her bald head, then at the photos of the bruises on my phone.
"That bastard," Sarah whispered, her eyes flashing with a familiar fire. "Steven is just like his father. Richard did the same thing to his first wife—kept her isolated, controlled her through fear and money until she ran away and vanished. I knew he was cooking the books on the federal highway project, Arthur. I found the double ledger in 2024, but before I could download it, Richard’s security team escorted me out of the building."
"Can you get past the server room security if we get you inside?" Arthur asked.
Sarah smiled, a slow, predatory expression. "Richard is a billionaire, but he's cheap when it comes to IT infrastructure. He uses a legacy biometric system that can be bypassed with an administrative override code from the building’s main electrical closet. I still remember the override sequence. But we need a distraction. The office building has a 24-hour guard desk in the lobby."
Reese leaned forward, her small face intense. "The prom," she said.
We all looked at her.
"The prom starts at seven o'clock at the Country Club," Reese explained, tapping her chin. "Steven’s dad is the main sponsor. He’s going to be there for the opening speeches. Everyone who matters in this town will be at the Country Club. The office building downtown will be completely empty, except for the one guard."
"And the guard is Terry," Arthur realized, a spark of excitement hitting his voice. "Terry’s grandson is the starting quarterback for the high school team. He’s going to be watching the prom live-stream on his phone in the lobby. He won't be looking at the security monitors."
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"We go at seven-thirty," I decided. "Arthur and Sarah go through the back basement entrance using the override. Kayla and I will stay in the car as lookouts and handlers. Reese..."
"I'm staying with Mrs. Gable next door," Reese said, anticipating my concern. "But I'm keeping my tape recorder. Just in case."
