Chapter 6 - THE FALL OF VANESSA COLE
While Grant was being processed at the Lew Sterrett Justice Center, Vanessa Cole was sitting in the executive lounge of the Ritz-Carlton Dallas, attempting to organize her exit strategy.
She had booked a one-way ticket to London for 8:00 PM. Her luggage—four large Louis Vuitton trunks filled with the designer clothes, furs, and jewelry Grant had purchased for her over fourteen months—was stacked near the bellhop station.
She raised a glass of champagne to her lips, her hand shaking slightly. "It doesn't matter," she muttered to herself. "I have the Miami property. I have three hundred thousand dollars in jewelry in these bags. I can start over in Europe."
"Ms. Vanessa Cole?"
Vanessa looked up.
Standing in front of her table were two agents from the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, flanked by two Dallas police officers.
Vanessa set her glass down, her heart sinking. "Yes? What is the meaning of this?"
"Ms. Cole, I am Special Agent Henderson with the IRS," the lead officer said, pulling a badge and a federal warrant from his jacket. "We have a federal seizure warrant for all assets in your possession derived from fraudulent wire transfers executed by Grant Whitmore."
Vanessa stood up, her cheeks turning bright red with anger. "This is absurd! I am an independent businesswoman! Those bags contain my personal belongings!"
"Those bags contain items purchased using funds embezzled from Whitmore Capital investors," Agent Henderson said calmly. He gestured to two officers, who walked over to her luggage stack and began attaching yellow evidence tags to her trunks.
"You can't touch my luggage!" Vanessa shrieked, making a movement toward the bags.
An officer stepped in front of her, blocking her path. "Ms. Cole, if you interfere with federal officers executing a search warrant, you will be arrested for obstruction of justice."
"Grant gave those to me as gifts!" Vanessa wept, high-society guests in the lounge turning to watch the spectacle. "He bought them for me!"
"And under federal asset forfeiture law," Marcus Thorne’s smooth voice echoed as he stepped out from behind a marble pillar in the lobby, "gifts purchased with stolen funds remain the proceeds of crime and are subject to immediate seizure."
Vanessa glared at Marcus with pure hatred. "You... you ruined him! You ruined everything!"
"No, Ms. Cole," Marcus said quietly, stopping beside the IRS agents. "Grant ruined himself. You were simply the expensive parasite that accelerated his decay. Oh, and regarding your Miami penthouse..."
Vanessa froze. "What about Miami?"
"The deed was recorded four days after Grant fraudulently transferred two million dollars from Whitmore Capital’s payroll account," Marcus explained with a thin, ruthless smile. "The federal court has placed a lis pendens on the property. Bank of America initiated foreclosure proceedings two hours ago. You no longer have an address in Florida."
Vanessa dropped back into her chair, her face pale, her high-heeled shoes slipping on the polished floor.
May you like
The officers unzipped her primary leather bag, pulling out the velvet jewel boxes inside. The Cartier necklaces, the diamond rings, and the heirloom sapphire brooch that belonged to Claire’s mother were all logged into evidence bags.
"Have a pleasant flight to London, Ms. Cole," Marcus said softly. "If you can still afford the ticket."
