Chapter 5 - The Midnight LockoutBy 5:45 AM, Raymond, Judith, and Paige stood on the wet cobblestone driveway in their coats, holding six hurriedly packed suitcases.
The sky was turning a pale, cold gray as the sun began to rise behind the storm clouds.
The heavy oak front doors of the mansion were locked tight with brand-new electronic keypads. Two armed Vance security guards stood at the top of the stone steps, their arms crossed, blocking the entrance.
Raymond pulled out his primary credit card to book a room at the Ritz-Carlton downtown.
He swiped the card on his phone app. [TRANSACTION DECLINED â ACCOUNT FROZEN.]
He tried his secondary corporate card. [TRANSACTION DECLINED.]
âRaymond!â Judith panicked, grabbing his arm. âWhat is happening?! Why aren't the cards working?!â
âThe bank system is glitching!â Raymond yelled, his hands shaking violently as he dialed his private banker at First National.
The line picked up on the second ring, but it wasn't his bankerâs voice. It was an automated message from the Federal Department of Financial Crimes:
âNotice: Accounts associated with Sterling & Associates have been placed under a Non-Intercourse Federal Seizure Order pursuant to 18 U.S. Code § 1344. Please contact the United States Attorneyâs Office for further information.â
Raymondâs phone slipped from his fingers, crashing onto the wet gravel.
Paige sat down on her suitcase in the middle of the driveway, sobbing hysterically as her expensive lifestyle vanished into thin air within sixty seconds.
A dark sedan pulled up to the gate. I stepped out of the back seat, wearing a clean charcoal suit, holding a hot cup of coffee.
Raymond glared at me with wild, bloodshot eyes, marching toward the gate. âArthur! What did you do to my accounts?!â
May you like
I took a slow sip of coffee, looking at the three of them through the iron bars of the gate.
âI told you yesterday, Raymond,â I said softly. âYou lost everything.â
Related Stories
