Alyssa: Where did you find that key?! That was supposed to be melted down in the grate[cite: 1]!
Julian: Your father bought a fireproof lockbox to hide his stolen documents, Alyssa. How ironic that it saved my company[cite: 1].
Alyssa: That key belongs to the private Vance family vault in Houston[cite: 1]!
Julian: This key opens the master server safe in the basement of this very house, Alyssa[cite: 1].
Officer Miller: Mr. Sterling, the transport vehicle is waiting at the front portico. Do you want us to take her down[cite: 1]?
Julian: Hold her right there for three minutes, Officer. Let her watch her father's empire crumble first[cite: 1].
Julian pulled his smartphone from his inner pocket, dialing his chief corporate counsel on speakerphone[cite: 1].
David Henderson: Julian? Thank God you answered! The financial news is running rumors about an emergency board filing[cite: 1]!
Julian: David, listen to me very carefully. Freeze all digital proxy voting rights for Vance Holdings immediately[cite: 1].
David Henderson: On what legal authority? Marcus Vance filed a certified stock transfer thirty minutes ago[cite: 1]!
Julian: On authority of Section Nine of the corporate bylaws: felony fraud and attempted homicide of an executive heir[cite: 1].
Alyssa lunged forward against her restraints, her chains rattling violently against Officer Miller's grip[cite: 1].
Alyssa: Henderson, don't listen to him! That transfer was signed by Julian's father before he suffered his stroke[cite: 1]!
Julian: My father was in a coma at Dallas General when this document was notarized, Alyssa[cite: 1]!
David Henderson: Wait... The notary stamp on this filing is dated October fourteenth, three years ago[cite: 1]!
Julian: The exact date my father was admitted to the intensive care unit with multiple organ failure[cite: 1].
David Henderson: Good Lord... That makes the entire transfer document a federal class-one felony forgery[cite: 1]!
Julian: Forward the high-resolution scans directly to the United States Attorney's Office in Dallas, David[cite: 1].
David Henderson: I'm sending the encrypted packet right now. Federal marshals will have warrants within ten minutes[cite: 1].
Julian tapped the red button to end the call, stepping within six inches of Alyssa's shivering frame[cite: 1].
Julian: You didn't just try to drown my baby today, Alyssa. You handed me the evidence to put your entire bloodline behind bars[cite: 1].
Alyssa: You think my father will go down without a fight? He controls half the maritime shipping lanes on the Gulf Coast[cite: 1]!
Julian: Your father was detained at the Fort Worth private airfield twenty minutes ago, Alyssa[cite: 1].
Alyssa's jaw dropped open, her eyes bulging as if she had been struck across the face a second time[cite: 1].
Alyssa: What... What did you say[cite: 1]?
Julian: Why do you think I came home early from the charity gala tonight[cite: 1]?
Alyssa: You said you had a headache from the boardroom negotiations[cite: 1]!
Julian: I received a call from the Federal Bureau of Investigation while standing in the VIP reception hall[cite: 1].
Alyssa: The FBI...? On my father[cite: 1]?!
Julian: Your father has been under federal surveillance for eleven months for laundering cartel money through our cargo barges[cite: 1].
Alyssa: That's a lie! My father is an honorable corporate director[cite: 1]!
Julian: He gave you up the second the federal marshals pulled him out of his limousine, Alyssa[cite: 1].
The heavy silence of the library was broken by a soft, familiar cry echoing down the grand spiral staircase[cite: 1].
Julian turned toward the hallway, his face softening instantly as the paramedic carried little Toby down the steps[cite: 1].
The infant was wrapped in a dry, warm blue fleece blanket, his round brown eyes clear and wide as he reached for his father[cite: 1].
Paramedic Davis: Airway is completely clear, Mr. Sterling. Oxygen saturation is ninety-nine percent. He's safe[cite: 1].
Julian reached out, taking his baby boy into his arms and pulling him tight against his wet tuxedo shirt[cite: 1].
Julian: Daddy's right here, Toby. The nightmare is over[cite: 1].
Toby let out a soft, contented whimper, his small cheek resting against Julian's lapel as he looked at the woman in chains[cite: 1].
Alyssa: Look at that little beggar... He took my entire life away from me[cite: 1]!
Julian: He didn't take your life, Alyssa. Your own bottomless greed took it[cite: 1].