Chapter 7 - The Trial of the Century
By Monday morning, the news of the massive federal raid on Vanguard Shipping was splashing across every headline in the country.
The conspiracy ran deeper than anyone had imagined. Julian Vance wasn't working alone; he had bought off two sitting senators, a chief of police, and three federal judges in an elaborate scheme to gain absolute control of the Mid-Atlantic ports.
With the encrypted recordings provided anonymously by Dominic’s legal network, federal prosecutors built an ironclad case against Vanguard.
Inside the federal courthouse in downtown Philadelphia, the courtroom was packed to capacity. Reporters, federal agents, and high-society observers strained to catch a glimpse of the proceedings.
Julian Vance sat at the defense table, looking drained, defeated, and graying at the temples. Across the aisle sat the United States Attorney, laying out an unbroken chain of evidence that tied Vanguard to organized murder, extortion, and the attempted bombing of a private estate.
Dominic Caruso sat quietly in the back row of the gallery, wearing a dark navy suit, his face completely impassive. He didn't testify. He didn't make a speech. He simply watched as the legal system he had manipulated for years did the bloody work for him.
When the guilty verdict was read—sentencing Julian Vance to four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole—Julian turned around in his chair, locking eyes with Dominic one last time.
Dominic offered a single, almost imperceptible nod.
May you like
The traitor was gone. The syndicate was crushed. The streets were clean again.
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