Chapter 5 - The Trap is Set
Michael’s heart pounded against his ribs like a trapped bird. The progress bar on the computer screen was only at 72%.
“Michael!” Ashley’s voice grew louder, followed by the aggressive rattling of the doorknob. “Open this door right now, or I’m calling security to take it off its hinges!”
“Just a minute, Ashley!” Michael called out, forcing his voice to sound annoyed rather than panicked. He looked back at the screen. 81%.
“David, she’s outside,” Michael whispered into his headset.
“Hold her off for sixty seconds, Michael. Apex is almost at the core files,” David urged.
Michael stood up, deliberately knocking a heavy stack of books off his desk onto the hardwood floor to create a distraction. He walked slowly toward the door, unlocking it just as Ashley was about to scream again. He opened it halfway, blocking her view of the desk.
“What is wrong with you?” Michael snapped, adopting an expression of exhausted frustration. “I’m trying to review the quarterly financial reports. I knocked over my files because you’re screaming through the door like a maniac.”
Ashley pushed past him, her eyes scanning the room suspiciously. She looked at the floor where the books were scattered, then her gaze drifted to the computer screen.
Michael held his breath. The screen had gone completely black. The flash drive was hidden behind the massive desktop tower.
“Why were you locked in?” she asked, her eyes narrowing as she walked toward the desk.
“Because ever since you took over my estate, your lawyers have been emailing me aggressive corporate revisions every hour,” Michael lied smoothly, stepping between her and the computer. “I needed peace and quiet to read them. If we are going to run this company together, you need to stop treating me like a prisoner in my own home.”
Ashley stared at him for a long, agonizing moment. Then, her harsh expression melted into a smug, arrogant smile. She reached out and patted his cheek. “Good. I’m glad you’re learning your place, Michael. Just remember who holds the cards.”
She turned and walked out of the room, leaving the door open. Michael waited until her footsteps faded down the hallway before sinking back into his chair. He looked at the hidden earpiece. “David? Did it work?”
“Apex got everything,” David’s voice came through, filled with fierce satisfaction. “We have the original IP addresses for the bank transfers. They didn’t just go to Ashley’s brother—they originated from Ashley’s personal laptop. And there’s more. Apex found an encrypted folder labeled 'Project E.' It contains the digital receipts of the payments made to the hospital administrator to erase Emily’s birth records.”
Michael let out a long, shaky breath. “We have her.”
“Not yet,” David cautioned. “This is digital evidence. In a high-stakes court case, her expensive lawyers will claim the files were hacked or fabricated. We need a confession, or we need the physical hard drive from her laptop to prove authenticity. And we need to find the man she paid to take those fake photos of Emily.”
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“The private investigator she used,” Michael realized. “Do you know who he is?”
“His name is Marcus Vance,” David said. “He’s a dirty ex-cop who does blackmail work for the city's elite. If we can get to Vance and flip him, Ashley’s entire case collapses. But we have to be fast. Ashley’s brother was spotted near the safe house in Savannah this afternoon. They are hunting for Emily.”
