Chapter 3 - The Illusion of Victory
Thousands of miles away, under the scorching Bahamian sun, Rachel Parker sipped a mimosa from a crystal flute. She adjusted her designer sunglasses, looking out over the turquoise ocean from the balcony of their $5,000-a-night presidential suite.
"Do you think it's done yet?" Derek asked, stepping out onto the balcony wearing a silk robe. He kissed her neck.
"Oh, I'm sure of it," Rachel laughed, tracing the rim of her glass. "The old man hasn't had water in four days. Lucas is probably too busy crawling under some machinery in the mud to even notice the smell. By the time we get back, we'll act devastated, plan a beautiful funeral, and hand Lucas his walking papers."
Inside the suite, her parents, Gregory and Pamela, were loudly arguing over which luxury cars they were going to buy once the estate was officially theirs. They were living in a fantasy world, entirely funded by the corporate credit cards Derek had hijacked.
Back in Idaho, however, the reality they were returning to was being meticulously dismantled.
Over the next twelve days, Lucas and Walter worked in absolute secrecy. Walter was relocated to Arthur Vance’s heavily guarded private estate to recover his strength. Meanwhile, Lucas returned to the house, carefully staging it to look exactly as Rachel had left it.
But behind the scenes, a legal massacre was taking place.
Armed with Walter’s power of attorney and the hidden camera footage, Arthur Vance went to the authorities. The FBI’s financial crimes division quietly froze the Cayman Island accounts. The local police drafted arrest warrants for Derek, Rachel, and her parents for conspiracy, embezzlement, and attempted murder by neglect.
Lucas, authorized by Walter, walked into the Lawson Lumber headquarters and quietly changed the access codes, the security systems, and the banking passwords. He met with the board of directors in a closed-door session, playing a video message from Walter. The board, initially shocked, quickly fell in line.
Every night, Lucas returned to the empty house. He packed all of his belongings and moved them into a new apartment Arthur had rented for him. He left Rachel’s designer clothes, her expensive shoes, and her jewelry exactly where they were.
On the final night before their return, Lucas stood in the kitchen. He looked at the heavy cedar box and the notebook paper where Rachel had written her callous note. He left it exactly where it was.
May you like
The trap was fully set. The cage door was open. Now, all he had to do was wait for the rats to walk inside.
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