Chapter 6 - The Phone Call from Tampa
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Marcus Vance stepped forward from behind me.
He opened his leather portfolio, extracted a certified document bearing the gold embossed seal of the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, and adjusted his glasses.
“Mr. Dane,” Marcus spoke, his deep baritone carrying the unyielding weight of federal authority. “My name is Marcus Vance, Chief Litigation Counsel for Sterling Global Asset Management. I represent Mrs. Maren Caldwell-Dane.”
Russell smirked, totally unimpressed. “I don't care if you're the Attorney General. The deed is in my name! Call the local zoning board! You can’t touch this house without a sixty-day notice of lis pendens!”
“Under ordinary civil procedures, that would be true, Mr. Dane,” Marcus replied smoothly. “However, eighty minutes ago, Chief Federal Magistrate Alvarez reviewed an emergency ex parte filing regarding systematic bank fraud, elder abuse, and aggravated financial larceny.”
Marcus looked at the lead deputy standing beside the cruiser. “Deputy Miller, please present the emergency seizure writ.”
Deputy Miller stepped up the porch steps, handing a red-jacketed warrant to Russell. “Russell Dane and Veronica Hayes. You are hereby ordered to vacate these premises immediately. All assets, titles, and real estate are frozen under federal custody.”
Russell’s hands began to shake violently as he read the first page. “This is garbage! This is a domestic dispute! I’m calling my brother at the municipal clerk’s office!”
He snatched his smartphone from his pocket and pressed speed dial.
Before the line on his phone could connect, the satellite phone in my coat pocket vibrated.
I reached in, answered the call, and tapped the loudspeaker button.
The cultured, thunderous voice of Arthur Sterling boomed across the entire front yard, amplified through the vehicle intercoms.
“Maren, my dear,” Arthur said, his voice crisp and lethal. “The State Banking Commissioner and the FBI Financial Crimes Unit have finalized the emergency seizure orders. All private accounts under Russell Dane, including his offshore LLCs in Delaware and Panama, have been frozen. Is the individual currently resisting lawful eviction?”
Russell’s smartphone slipped from his fingers, clattering uselessly down the wooden steps into the dirt.
May you like
Every drop of blood drained from his face until he looked like a hollowed-out skull.
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