Chapter 8 - Setting the Trap
By noon the following day, a joint task force consisting of the Pinecrest Police Department, state investigators, and federal agents had transformed the Willow Creek property into an invisible fortress. Snipers were positioned in the upper windows of neighboring houses, plainclothes officers lined the street in unmarked vans, and audio-visual recording devices were planted throughout my parents' home. The plan was simple yet high-risk: I would arrive at the house claiming I had returned to "reconcile" with the family and hand over the ledger. Victor Sterling, eager to recover the damning evidence, would arrive to collect both the drive and me. The moment Sterling and my parents confirmed the transaction on camera, the tactical teams would storm the premises. At four o'clock, I pulled up to Willow Creek Drive in a police-monitored vehicle. My heart was pounding like a jackhammer against my ribs, but my hands remained perfectly steady. I carried a duplicate USB drive in my pocket, while the original remained safe in federal custody. As I walked up the front steps, the splintered front door had been temporarily repaired with a crude wooden latch. I pushed it open and stepped into the foyer. My mother, father, and Jade were sitting in the living room. When they saw me walk through the door, their reactions were chillingly fake. My mother instantly sprang from the couch, wiping away theatrical tears. "Ivy! Oh, thank God you're safe!" she cried, rushing toward me with open arms. "We were so worried about you!" I stepped back, holding up a cold hand to stop her approach. "Don't touch me, Mom." My father stood up, putting on his stern, authoritative patriarch persona. "Ivy, where have you been? Do you have any idea the danger you put this family in by running off like a child?" "I know about the ledger, Dad," I said flatly, my voice echoing in the quiet room. "I know about Victor Sterling. And I know you tried to sell me to pay off Jade's debt." The room went dead silent. The fake tears on my mother's face dried instantly. My father's authoritative posture collapsed, replaced by a dark, ugly sneer. "You don't know anything, you ungrateful little brat," Jade spat from the sofa, her face contorted in bitter hatred. "You were always useless to this family anyway! The least you could do is make yourself useful for once!"
