Page 104 of Finding Peace
Corruption.
Not just greed.
Systematic fucking corruption.
“You found a paper trail?” I ask.
“Oh yeah. It’s buried behind a nonprofit redevelopment initiative. Those filings don’t show up in the same financial searches as corporateaccounts. Different oversight boards. Different disclosure rules. Once I knew to look there, though? The pattern lit up like a Christmas tree. I don’t think I would have found it if you hadn’t led me there,” Sebastian says. “Looks like he’s been doing this for as long as he’s been doing business. Crossing state lines. Misuse of federal grants. Wire transfers. Fraud. Conspiracy. If someone hands this to the right task force, it’s not a fine and a slap on the wrist. It’s indictment territory, Lincoln.”
My pulse steadies now. “Has anyone looked at him seriously before?”
“Looks like there were whispers, but nothing stuck. He donates. He smiles. He shakes hands with all the right people. But this?” Seb huffs a breath. “This is big.”
I look toward the staircase. Toward the woman carrying our child.
“He threatened the wrong family,” I murmur.
Sebastian’s voice lowers. “You want me to package it?”
“Yes.”
“All of it?”
“All of it. I’ll let you know when to send them. You know who to send them to?”
I can practically hear Sebastian’s smile through the phone. “I’ll make sure it hits the right desk.”
The two of us talk for another minute or two, and when I hang up, I just stand there for a moment.
Miles Keller built Hearthland Development and his empire on stolen money and public trust.
We won’t touch him.
But we will let the people he’s been robbing see him get what he deserves.
No blood.
No alleyways.
No retaliation headlines.
Just a man in a suit being walked out in cuffs while cameras flash.
I head right for Lawson in our office.
He looks up the moment I step inside. “Well?”
I lean against the doorframe. “Federal grant fraud. Shell nonprofits. Land manipulation. Threats. Wire transfers.”
Lawson’s expression doesn’t change, but his eyes go sharp. “Enough?”
“More than enough.”
He nods once. “Good.”
And for the first time since Keller started circling us, I don’t feel like we’re bracing for impact. I finally feel like we’re the ones with our foot on his neck.
He just doesn’t know it yet.
