Chapter 6 - The Frozen Vaults
My father stood up, his face contorted in a mix of terror and rage. "You arrogant piece of trash! I made you! You think you can just cast us aside? We have the power of attorney! The courts will take months to sort this out, and by then, Drago will have stripped your company bare!"
"I don't think you understand how modern banking works, Arthur," I said, walking over to the fireplace and pulling down the framed copy of the forged deed. I threw it onto the floor, the glass shattering. "You signed a digital transfer. But what your corrupt lawyers didn't tell you is that Vance Global’s primary treasury is locked behind a decentralized multi-signature vault."
Arthur frowned, his ignorance of financial technology showing on his face. "What does that mean?"
"It means that for any transaction over five hundred thousand dollars to clear, it requires three digital keys," I explained, pulling out my encrypted phone. "One key is held by me. One is held by Victoria’s legal firm. And the third is held by a secure trust company in Switzerland. Your forged power of attorney only granted you access to my local personal accounts—accounts I kept at a maximum balance of fifty thousand dollars for security reasons. You didn't steal my fortune, Arthur. You stole my pocket change."
My father gasped, his hands trembling as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, frantically checking his banking apps.
"The forty million dollars you promised Drago doesn't exist," I continued, stepping closer to him. "And the loans you took out against this house? The bank has already flagged them as fraudulent. The funds have been recalled. By tomorrow morning, every credit card, every bank account, and every line of credit with the Vance name on it will be blacklisted globally. You are bankrupt, Arthur. Completely and utterly."
The front door opened, and Victor Drago walked in.
He was a shorter man, dressed in an impeccably tailored cashmere coat, with cold, calculating eyes that looked like they had never seen a moment of joy. He was flanked by two large men who carried themselves with a quiet, lethal confidence.
"Mr. Ryan Vance," Drago said, his voice a smooth, low purr. "I’ve heard a lot about you. You are a very difficult man to locate."
"And you are a very easy man to trace, Victor," I said, turning to face him. "I’ve been watching your offshore accounts in Nicosia for eighteen months. Did you really think I didn't notice my father’s sudden influx of capital during my expansion?"
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Drago paused, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Your father promised me your Tokyo real estate holdings as collateral, Mr. Vance. I am a businessman. I expect my collateral."
"My father sold you a bridge he didn't own, Victor," I said, holding up my phone. "And if you don't leave my house in thirty seconds, the offshore banking commission in Cyprus is going to receive a very interesting anonymous tip regarding your shell companies in Panama."
