Chapter 9 - The Day of Judgment
The arrest was quiet.
At 8:45 p.m., two black sedans pulled into our driveway. Four federal agents in suits walked up the steps. They didn't knock loudly; they didn't draw the attention of the neighbors.
Garrett didn't fight them. He let them lead him out of the house in handcuffs, his head bowed, his tailored jacket draped over his hands to hide the metal cuffs.
I stood on the front porch, watching them go.
Before he got into the back of the sedan, Garrett turned his head and looked at me. His eyes were wide, pleading, desperate for a sliver of the forgiving wife he had married ten years ago.
I didn't smile. I didn't cry. I simply raised my hand and held up Ethan's green stuffed dinosaur, letting him see it in the dim light of the porch lamp.
He closed his eyes and got into the car.
The next morning, the story broke on the front page of every major newspaper in the city.
"Vanguard Capital CEO Arrested for Multi-Million Dollar Fraud."
"Grieving Father Accused of Stealing From Deceased Son's Medical Trust."
The public backlash was swift and merciless. The very PR machine Garrett had spent years building turned on him with a viciousness that left him completely isolated. His partners released statements condemning his actions; his friends vanished; his legal team resigned within forty-eight hours when they realized his assets had been completely frozen.
Vanessa Thorne was arrested at the airport later that afternoon, trying to board a flight to Switzerland. She was currently held on a million-dollar bond, her lawyers frantically trying to negotiate a plea deal by offering to testify against Garrett.
I sat in the quiet of my living room, the sunlight streaming through the windows, illuminating the dust motes dancing in the air.
My phone rang. It was Marcus.
"It's over, Clara," he said, his voice quiet with a deep, professional satisfaction. "The prosecutors have everything they need. Garrett’s looking at a minimum of fifteen years in a federal penitentiary. The judge has already denied bail due to the flight risk."
"And the trust?" I asked.
"We recovered eight million of the original ten," Marcus said. "The rest was spent on Vanessa’s properties and his personal lifestyle, but we’re liquidating Aegis Development’s assets next week. Every single dollar will be returned to the estate."
"Thank you, Marcus," I said.
"What are you going to do now, Clara?"
May you like
I looked down at the green dinosaur sitting on the coffee table beside me.
"I'm going to take Ethan to the beach," I said.
