By next week, Rhodes Aviation will be in free fall. Janet opened more files, emails, bank transfers, meeting schedules, a complete trail showing how Philip and Daniel had systematically bribed regulators to target Alicia's company. "Call Thomas," Alicia told Sasha, referring to her attorney. Get him here now and contact Marcus' investigation team. They need to verify every piece of this.
Within an hour, her office had transformed into a war room. Thomas Whitaker paced as he listened to the recordings again, taking detailed notes. Forensic accountants from Marcus's firm examined the financial documents while Janet's team authenticated the digital trails. "This is exactly what we needed," Thomas said, pausing the playback. But we have to move fast.
Once they realize this leaked, they'll try to destroy evidence. The regulators are already compromised, Janet added. They could start their investigation any moment. Alicia stood at her window watching the city below. "Then we go public before they can act.
Full press conference. Release everything at once. " But first, she turned to Thomas. "What are the criminal implications here? " Multiple federal crimes, he replied immediately. Bribery, corruption, conspiracy. The FBI's public corruption unit would be very interested in this.
"Make the call," Alicia directed. But tell them we're going public tomorrow morning. They can either get ahead of this or catch up later. Throughout the day, her team worked frantically to prepare. Sasha coordinated with media outlets while Thomas drafted statements.
Janet's people created secure backups of everything. Protecting against possible cyber retaliation. Late afternoon brought confirmation from Marcus' investigators. Every document was authentic. The recordings hadn't been altered.
The evidence was overwhelming. As sunset approached, Alicia reviewed the press conference materials one final time. Photos of the bribed regulators, transcripts of Philip and Daniel's conversations, bank records showing suspicious payments, everything needed to expose their corruption. Her phone buzzed, an unknown number. She almost declined it, but something made her answer.
Ms. Rhodess, a woman's voice, professional and direct. "This is Special Agent Sarah Chen, FBI public corruption unit. We need to meet tonight regarding Philip Lancaster and Daniel Ror. Alicia asked carefully.
And the evidence you've collected. We're prepared to open a formal investigation, but we need to move quickly. "Can you come to our field office in an hour? " Alicia checked the time with my attorney. "Of course. We'll have U.
S. Attorneys present as well. This is serious, Ms. Rhodess. What you've uncovered?
It goes beyond Elite Jets. Thomas arrived within minutes of her call. As they rode the elevator down to her waiting car, he reviewed federal statutes on his tablet. "They'll want us to hold the press conference," he warned. Keep everything quiet while they build their case.
"They can want whatever they like," Alicia replied. But I'm not letting Philip and Daniel control the narrative one more day. We go public tomorrow as planned. Her driver took a circuitous route to the federal building, watching for tails. Security was waiting to escort them directly to a conference room where Agent Chen and two prosecutors sat with stacks of files.
"Thank you for coming," Chen began, but Alicia raised her hand. "Before we start," she said firmly. "Understand this. I'm holding a press conference tomorrow morning. I'm releasing everything we have.
I'll cooperate fully with your investigation, but I won't delay exposing what they've done. The prosecutors exchanged glances. Chen smiled slightly. Actually, Ms. Rhodess, we're counting on it.
Your press conference will smoke out more witnesses. We just needed to ensure your evidence was solid before we moved forward with criminal charges. For the next 2 hours, they reviewed the recordings and documents. The prosecutors took detailed notes while Chen outlined the scope of potential charges, not just against Philip and Daniel, but against multiple regulators and other executives. "This is bigger than Elite Jets," Chen explained.
We've suspected corruption in private aviation for years, but could never prove it. You've given us the key to unraveling their whole network. As they prepared to leave, Chen handed Alicia her card. "The moment you finish your press conference tomorrow, we'll execute search warrants. By noon, Mr.
Lancaster and Mr. Ror will be in custody. In the car heading home, Thomas reviewed his notes. "They're serious about prosecution. Multiple federal charges, possible RICO implications.
Philip and Daniel won't just lose their company, they're looking at prison time. Alicia watched the city lights blur past her window. Tomorrow would change everything. Justice was finally within reach. The January morning was still dark when Alicia's car pulled up to the federal building in lower Manhattan.
Frost coated the windows and her breath made small clouds in the cold air as she and Thomas walked to the entrance. Security guards checked their IDs twice before escorting them through a maze of corridors. Agent Chen met them in a windowless conference room where three other agents and two prosecutors sat reviewing files. The fluorescent lights cast harsh shadows across the serious faces around the table. Ms.
Rhodess, Mr. Whitaker. Chen greeted them, gesturing to empty chairs. Thank you for coming in so early. We wanted to brief you before your press conference.
Alicia set her briefcase on the table, noting the thick folders labeled Elite Jets investigation spread before each person. "I assume you've verified everything we provided? " multiple times. One of the prosecutors, a sharp-featured woman in her 50s, confirmed, ""I'm Amanda Torres, lead prosecutor. "The evidence is solid. More than solid.
It's devastating. "" The other prosecutor, James Wilson, opened one of the files. We've already secured sealed indictments against Philip Lancaster and Daniel Ror. The moment your press conference ends, we move. "What exactly does that mean? " Thomas asked, pulling out his legal pad. Agent Chen activated a wall screen showing a timeline.
"At approximately 11:00 a. M., you'll begin your press conference. By 11:30, we expect you to have revealed the key evidence. At that point, we'll execute simultaneous search warrants at Elite Jets's offices in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. Lancaster and ROR will be taken into custody, Torres added, along with three senior regulators and their chief financial officer.