Chapter 9 - The Ledger's Secret
Claire stared at the book sitting on the polished mahogany wood.
“Why are you giving it to me?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. “You know what’s inside that book. It contains enough evidence to put you in a federal prison for the rest of your life.”
“Look inside,” Adrian said calmly.
Claire stepped slowly to the desk. Her fingers brushed against the cool leather cover before she unlatched the silver clasp and opened the first page.
Her sharp eyes scanned the handwritten entries, dates, amounts, and names.
Offshore accounts in Panama. Payoffs to local precinct captains. Shipping manifests for illegal cargo.
Then, she turned to the back section of the ledger—pages dated five years ago.
A single entry was highlighted in bold black ink:
“Project Omega: Federal Task Force leak. Payment of $500,000 made to Assistant Director Thomas Vance, FBI.”
Claire felt all the air leave her lungs. Her knees felt weak, and she had to place her hand on the edge of the desk to steady herself.
Thomas Vance.
Her uncle.
The deputy director of her own task force—the man who had recruited her into the FBI, the man who had mentored her, the man she had loved like a father.
He was the traitor.
He was the one who had sold her route to the Moretti family five years ago for half a million dollars.
“No...” Claire whispered, tears welling in her eyes for the first time in five years. “No... Uncle Thomas...”
“My uncle didn't track you down on his own five years ago, Clara,” Adrian said softly, standing up from his desk and walking around to stand beside her. “Your uncle gave him your location because you were getting too close to discovering his illegal offshore accounts.”
Adrian reached out, his hand hesitating for a fraction of a second before gently wrapping around her shoulder, offering her solid, unyielding support.
“I kept that ledger sealed in my vault because I was waiting for the right moment to destroy Thomas Vance myself,” Adrian explained quietly. “He’s running for Senate now. He’s using federal authority to protect his own criminal network.”
Claire wiped a tear from her cheek, her sorrow instantly transforming into a cold, fierce, unstoppable rage.
The grief that had weighed her down for five years dissolved, replaced by a crystalline clarity.
She looked up at Adrian.
“Help me bring him down,” Claire said, her voice shaking with righteous fury.
May you like
Adrian smiled—a real, genuine smile that reached his dark eyes, lighting up his handsome face.
“I thought you’d never ask, Agent Vance.”
