Chapter 8 - The Fall of Nebula Systems
The fallout from the arrest at the Greenwich County Clerk's Office hit the corporate news network like a megaton nuclear explosion.
By noon, major financial news outlets were broadcasting live updates on the systemic fraud unraveling around Nebula Systems and Apex Capital LLC. The federal government seized all corporate assets, froze thirty-two linked bank accounts, and issued arrest warrants for Marcus Vance, who was apprehended at JFK Airport trying to board a private jet to the Cayman Islands.
Because I had caught the fraud before the merger executed, Vance Holdings suffered zero financial loss. In fact, Julian Vance held a press conference that afternoon praising my forensic auditing skills, publicly declaring that my quick thinking had saved his firm from a fifty-million-dollar scam.
My firm promoted me on the spot to Senior Managing Partner of Risk & Compliance—a position that came with a massive salary increase, equity stock options, and full executive control over the tri-state division.
On Tuesday morning, I returned to my grandmother's house in Greenwich.
The house was quiet again. The toxic presence of Eric and his family was completely gone, replaced by the peaceful rustle of the autumn leaves outside the wide kitchen windows.
Evelyn walked in through the unlocked garden door carrying a bottle of champagne and two crystal glasses.
"I thought we should do a proper toast," Evelyn smiled warmly, setting the glasses on the granite counter. "One without forged documents or hidden microphones."
I laughed—a real, genuine, unburdened laugh for the first time in ten years. "I'd love that, Evelyn."
We popped the cork, pouring two golden glasses.
"How are the legal proceedings going?" Evelyn asked, leaning against the counter.
"Eric’s public defender tried to ask for bail this morning," I said, taking a sip. "The judge denied it outright due to flight risk and the scale of the federal wire fraud. He’s facing twelve to fifteen years in a federal penitentiary. Eleanor and Sarah are looking at five to eight years as co-conspirators, and Richard is taking a plea deal to testify against Marcus Vance."
"And the stolen $480,000?"
"The federal prosecutors seized Apex Capital's primary offshore account," I replied, a deeply satisfied smile spreading across my face. "Every single dollar Eric stole from my inheritance, plus interest and legal damages, has been fully frozen and will be returned to my personal account by the end of the month."
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"And the house?" Evelyn looked around the spacious, sunlit kitchen.
"This house belonged to my grandmother," I said, touching the warm cherry wood of the kitchen island. "It was built on love, hard work, and honesty. I'm keeping it, renovating every inch of it, and erasing every trace of Eric Sterling from its walls."
