Chapter 6: The Digital Guillotine
If Dominic wanted a war of shadows, I was going to give him a masterclass.
We transformed my coastal home into an impenetrable fortress. Chloe’s team covertly installed military-grade surveillance inside and outside the property. Every window was reinforced, every door wired with silent alarms.
But I knew a physical trap wasn't enough. To truly destroy Dominic, I had to cut the head off the snake. I had to obliterate his hidden empire so thoroughly that he would be left with nothing but the concrete floor of his cell.
For three days and nights, I sat in my home office, surrounded by monitors, fueled by black coffee and righteous anger. Sophia Sterling, my attorney, worked beside me, drafting the legal kill-switches.
Using Maya’s husband’s confiscated servers as a backdoor, I infiltrated Dominic’s ghost ledger. It was a masterpiece of illicit finance, spanning three continents. He had amassed nearly two million dollars in a decentralized crypto-tumbler and a web of Cayman accounts.
He thought his encryption was flawless. He forgot that I was the one who taught him how to encrypt in the first place.
I didn't just freeze the accounts. I rewrote the routing protocols.
“What exactly are you doing?” Sophia asked, watching lines of code reflect in my glasses.
“I’m triggering a catastrophic audit,” I explained, my fingers flying across the keyboard. “I’ve flagged every single one of his shell companies for international terrorism financing. It’s an automated tripwire. The moment his fixer tries to withdraw the bounty money to hit me, the bank will freeze the funds, ping Interpol, and lock the account permanently. Dominic won't just lose the money; he’ll trigger a federal investigation.”
“You’re bankrupting him while he’s in prison,” Sophia said, a slow, predatory smile spreading across her face.
“I’m taking his power,” I corrected.
Just then, my secure phone buzzed. It was an encrypted message, routed through three different VPNs.
Message: The ocean view won't save you. Leave the ledger alone, or you won't live to see the sunrise.
I stared at the screen. The fixer was already here. He was watching the house.
I looked at Chloe, who was stationed in the living room with a tactical team on standby. “He’s outside,” I said.
May you like
Chloe racked her weapon. “Let him come.”
I typed a reply to the encrypted message. Response: I like the view. Come enjoy it with me.
