Chapter 18 - The Network Unmasked
Morning light broke through the dense fog hanging over the riverbank.
Emily washed ashore on a bed of gravel, coughing up lungfuls of cold water.
Her whole body was bruised, shivering, and covered in mud, but she was alive.
A few feet away, Julian lay unconscious near a fallen log, his shoulder dislocated.
Emily dragged herself to his side, checking his pulse with trembling fingers.
His heartbeat was weak, but steady.
"Julian... wake up," Emily whispered, slapping his cold cheek gently.
Julian groaned, his eyes fluttering open as he gasped for breath.
"Where... where are we?" Julian rasped, wincing in agony as he clutched his arm.
"A few miles downstream from the estate," Emily replied, looking up at the gray sky.
"They think we drowned."
"We need to get to the federal courthouse in the city," Julian said, struggling to sit up.
"The documents I retrieved from Arthur's safe are still in my inner coat pocket."
"They're waterproof sealed."
Julian reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a thick, black leather drive.
"What is that?" Emily asked, staring at the drive.
"It's the master ledger," Julian explained, his voice grim.
"It doesn't just name the fake Arthur."
"It names every politician, judge, and police commander who took his blood money."
"This entire city was built on his syndicate's corruption."
Emily took the drive, her eyes hardening into cold steel.
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"Then we aren't just going to the police," Emily declared, standing up tall.
"We are going to broadcast this to the entire world."
