Chapter 5 - Unraveling the WebThe next morning, Ricardo set his counter-offensive into motion.
Using an encrypted satellite phone, he contacted Thomas Vance—his private security consultant and former intelligence officer who owed Ricardo his life after a rescue operation ten years prior. Within two hours, Thomas arrived at the downtown penthouse with two forensic accountants and a team of cyber-security experts.
“Ricardo, you look like a walking ghost,” Thomas said gravely, shaking his hand.
“I’ve been drinking poison for twenty days, Thomas,” Ricardo replied bluntly. “I need you to run a complete audit on every account Marcus Vance has touched in the last year.”
As the team set up their monitors across the penthouse dining table, Marta made fresh coffee and arranged simple sandwiches for everyone. Despite Ricardo telling her she was a guest, her natural instinct to care for people took over.
By mid-afternoon, the forensic accountants found the first major thread.
“Here it is,” the lead accountant said, pointing to a glowing red line of code on his screen. “Marcus created a shell corporation registered in the Cayman Islands called ‘Elysium Holdings.’ Over the last four months, he’s been quietly re-routing Santoro Enterprises’ commercial real estate dividends into Elysium. He’s already skimmed forty million dollars.”
“And Elena?” Ricardo asked.
Thomas pulled up a set of legal documents. “Your wife signed a power-of-attorney clause buried inside a routine asset protection package you signed six months ago. If you suffer a sudden medical incapacity or death, full control of your personal holdings transfers directly to her… and Marcus is listed as the sole executor.”
Ricardo stared at the screen. The trap had been meticulously crafted over months. Every signature, every tea mug, every turned-off camera was part of a master plan to erase him completely.
“Can we stop the transfers?” Thomas asked.
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“No,” Ricardo said softly, his eyes flashing with brilliant strategy. “If we block them now, they’ll know I’m onto them and run. I want the transfers to complete. I want Marcus to feel completely victorious.”
He turned to Marta, who was watching from the doorway. “Marta, I need your help for the final phase.”
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