Chapter 14 - Ethan’s Desperate Alliance
Deep within the high-security holding facility at Rikers Island, Ethan Cole sat in a sterile, fluorescent-lit interrogation booth, staring across the metal table at his court-appointed defense attorney. The custom Brioni tuxedo was long gone, replaced by a standard-issue orange jumpsuit that hung loosely on his frame.
'The federal prosecutor just filed the superseding indictment,' his attorney said, slamming a thick stack of documents onto the steel table. 'Twelve felony counts, Ethan. Industrial espionage, conspiracy, wire fraud, grand larceny. We are looking at a mandatory minimum of fifteen years in federal prison.'
Ethan shook his head frantically, his face pale and slick with nervous sweat. 'No, no, you don't understand. Apex Systems promised me protection! They said if I delivered the core routing algorithms, their legal team would back me up!'
'Apex Systems is currently being dismantled by federal regulators,' his lawyer snapped, losing patience. 'Their CEO resigned this morning, their offices were raided by the FBI, and they are cooperating fully with the Department of Justice to save their own skins. You don't have an alliance, Ethan. You have a target painted squarely on your back.'
Ethan slumped back in his chair, the horrifying reality finally sinking into his bones. Every bridge he had burned, every lie he had told, every person he had manipulated—from Vanessa to Claire—had come back to crush him simultaneously.
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'Can we cut a deal?' Ethan whispered, his voice cracking into a pathetic whine. 'Can I trade information on Apex for a reduced sentence?'
'What information?' his lawyer scoffed bitterly. 'The feds already seized every hard drive, every encrypted chat log, and every server cluster between you and Apex. You have nothing left to trade. Your only hope is a guilty plea and throwing yourself at the mercy of a judge who despises white-collar parasites.'
