“Of course.This is the fastest way to draw out the FBI, OFAC, and Golden himself.That’s what we want, remember?”Matthew licks his lips, hitting enter again to spin the slots.
“Oh.”I bite my nail.Anxiety creeps in, mixing with guilt.The thought of dragging Alan to court eats at me.He used to be a nice kid.But now?I have to drag him to court.
“Relax.This is just bait to expose the case,” Laird says, squeezing my hand.I nod, trusting him.
The minutes crawl.I still can’t believe we’re in the middle of something this big.Celebrities like Mallory West, politicians like Peter Morgan, and billionaires like Alan Schmidt always seem untouchable.I’ve only seen stories like this on TV.
“Alright, that’s enough.Now we wait for their reaction,” Matthew says with a satisfied chuckle.
“Well, we might not have to wait,” Laird says, pulling out his phone.He calls someone and puts it on speaker so we can all hear.The line buzzes before connecting.
“Hello, Golden.”
“Good evening to you too, Evans.”Golden’s voice sounds rough, tired.
“You might wanna check your surveillance again.See if anything’s setting off alarms,” Laird says with a half-smile.
“Oh, yes, thanks for that.I already informed the judge this afternoon.The account will be blocked soon.”Golden sounds smug.
“What do you mean?”Laird asks, frowning.We all look at each other.
“Your plan worked.The order for an official investigation is just waiting for the Attorney General’s signature.”
“Wait, when did that happen?”
“This afternoon.Around four p.m.,” Golden says with a sigh.
Our eyes widen.It’s six now, so four p.m.was two hours ago.We didn’t touch the card then.My mouth falls open.I glance at Laird.How could a suspicious transaction be detected at four p.m.?
“That wasn’t us.We used the card less than ten minutes ago,” Laird says, brows furrowed deep.
“Really?Well, whoever did it bought illegal goods from a dark web site we’ve been monitoring, naively without any protection.Bad move,” Golden chuckles.
“Right.Got it.Good luck,” Laird says and ends the call.His face is blank, same as mine.
“What the hell happened at four p.m.?”Matthew asks, frowning hard.
“So we did all this for nothing?”Dave groans through the speaker.
“Not for nothing.We still got what we wanted, just a different player.Now we wait for Golden’s next move.If Alan reports the transaction as fraud, the case will shut down before it even reaches court,” Laird mutters, expression grim.
“That sucks.I’m out for now,” Dave says before ending the call.
“So someone else already used Alan’s card?On a site traceable by the FBI?”I ask, trying to make sense of it.
“Brilliant,” Matthew says with a sarcastic laugh.“Shit.I need more wine.”He pours himself another glass from the wine bottle Alan gave me.
“Who did it?Were they helping us?”I ask, brows knitted.
“This is wild.I never believed in coincidences, but this is either destiny or divine trolling,” Matthew rambles, sounding half-drunk, half-shocked.
Laird squeezes my hand again.His warmth steadies me.
“For now, let’s stay low until Alan and his people get arrested,” Laird says calmly.
“When’s that gonna happen?”I ask, gripping his hand tighter.
“When the evidence is solid enough for court.Could be anytime—from tonight to a few weeks.”
