Chapter 5 - The Confession on Tape
The silence in the warehouse was absolute. The only sound was the distant, rhythmic hum of the facility's ventilation system.
Carter looked wildly between his father and the security officers, his bravado entirely crumbling. "Dad, you have to understand! The board demanded results. If we didn't secure the two-million-dollar DOT contract, the lab would lose its funding, everything we built—"
"Quiet, Carter," Dean Vance interrupted, his voice dangerously low. "You’ve said enough. More than enough." He turned to the security officers. "Officer, place Carter Vance, Brad Keller, and Tyler Hayes under arrest for aggravated assault, attempted endangerment, and wire fraud."
"Dad! You can't do this to me!" Carter shrieked as the two security officers stepped forward, pulling heavy steel handcuffs from their belts and forcefully pinning his wrists behind his back. "I'm your son! I protect your legacy!"
"My legacy was built on academic integrity, not corporate crime," Dean Vance replied coldly, turning his back on his son as Brad and Tyler were cuffed and hauled away toward the elevator.
Director Sterling walked over to Elena and me, offering a reassuring smile as he handed Maya a clean bottle of water. "Are you alright, Maya? That was a dangerous gamble, but your quick thinking with the scanner override saved your life."
"I didn't override it alone," I said, looking gratefully toward Elena, who was calmly retracting her wheelchair's magnetic anchors.
May you like
Elena rolled closer, tapping the side of her console. "The logistics scanner reads more than barcodes, Director Sterling. It reads historical data patterns. When Carter tagged Maya's chair with a destruct-test barcode, the system cross-referenced her student ID with the historical database of missing transfer students. It flagged the anomaly and diverted her straight to our archive."
"An archive that is about to be officially cleared out," Director Sterling said grimly, looking around at the rows of suitcases belonging to students who had been silenced or forced out over the years. "Every single student listed as an 'unregistered transfer' under the previous administration's tenure will be contacted, reinstated, and offered full restitution."
