Victoria didn't go back to Meridian Group. She went to a hotel.
Not a nice one. A anonymous one near the airport, where no one would think to look for her. She paid in cash, used a fake name, and locked the door behind her.
Then she opened the laptop and stared at the list.
Nathaniel Cross - $86,400,000
Richard Chan - $12,000,000
Ten other names. Smaller amounts. Lawyers, accountants, a senator's aide, a judge's clerk.
The money hadn't been stolen. It had been distributed.
Richard Chan wasn't a victim. He was a co-conspirator.
Victoria felt sick.
She pulled up the transaction history again. 2.4 million per month for three years. Exactly the amount next to Nathaniel's name. He hadn't been stealing from himself. He'd been paid.
But why? And by whom?
She opened the encrypted file again and scrolled past the names. At the bottom, a single line of text:
"Project Chimera - Phase 3 complete. Terminate all loose ends."
Terminate.
Victoria closed the laptop and sat in the dark.
Someone had killed Richard Chan. Not a heart attack. Not stress. Someone had made sure he couldn't talk.
And Nathaniel Cross was at the top of the list.
Her phone buzzed. Nathaniel.
"How did it go with Elena?"
She stared at the screen. She could tell him. She could send him the list. She could confront him.
But if he was involved, she'd lose her only lead.
If he wasn't involved, she'd lose her only ally.
She typed back: "She didn't know anything. Dead end."
"Come back to the office. I found something."
"Tomorrow. I'm tired."
"Okay. Get some rest."
Victoria turned off her phone and lay down on the hotel bed.
She didn't sleep.