If you don't drop the federal grand jury indictment against War Supplies Corporation by midnight, your niece won't leave this precinct alive, the police officer whispered, pressing his service re...
The ambulance rushed Clara away, sirens wailing, leaving behind a cold, echoing silence in the precinct. Henry rode with her, his small hand still clutched in hers. I watched them go, my heart a leaden weight in my chest, a burning fury churning inside me.
There would be no more delays, no more negotiations. My family had been brutalized. The time for due process, for measured investigation, was over.
“Marcus,” I said, my voice low and dangerously calm. “Get me a secure line to Attorney General Biddle. Immediately.”
Brody, sensing the shift in my demeanor, nodded without a word and began issuing orders to his marshals.
Within minutes, I was on the line with the Attorney General, his voice initially crisp and formal, but growing steadily colder as I recounted the details: Clara’s illegal detention, the planted evidence, the deliberate poisoning, Judge Albright’s coerced confession, Tommy Gallagher’s deep involvement, the incinerated logs, the attempted bribe.
“They have attacked a federal officer’s family, Mr. Attorney General,” I concluded, my voice shaking with barely suppressed rage. “They have committed federal crimes, including attempted murder, to obstruct a war fraud investigation. They will not be dealt with through the regular court system. Not now.”
There was a moment of silence on the line. Then, Attorney General Biddle’s voice came back, hard and decisive. “What do you propose, Arthur?”
“An emergency Executive Freeze Order,” I stated, without hesitation. “Under the War Powers Act. Seize all bank accounts, all credit lines, all government material vouchers, and all contracts for War Supplies Corporation and its subsidiaries. Immediately. Without warning.”
The Attorney General hesitated. “That’s an imperial order, Arthur. It will cause a catastrophic market collapse for those companies. It bypasses due process entirely.”
“They bypassed due process when they framed my niece and tried to kill her, sir,” I shot back. “We need to hit them where it hurts most. Financially. Cripple them so completely they cannot fight back. No trials, no appeals, just immediate, absolute financial ruin.”
Another pause. Then: “Very well, Arthur. I’ll initiate the order. Have your marshals ready to serve the freeze notices within the hour.”
I hung up the phone, a grim satisfaction settling over me. This was it. The nuclear option.
Within the next three hours, my team of Federal Marshals fanned out across Baltimore and Washington D.C., serving papers. The repercussions were instantaneous and brutal.
Brody called me back, his voice buzzing with adrenaline. “Arthur, it’s working. War Supplies Corporation’s main bank, First National, has frozen all assets. Their credit lines at Mercantile Bank are dead. Three of their major defense subcontractors just reported they can’t make payroll. Their entire financial network is seizing up.”
The war machine that had sought to break me was now breaking itself, collapsing under the sheer weight of federal authority. But the victory felt hollow, a cold comfort as I thought of Clara, fighting for her life in a hospital bed.
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