There was a long silence on the other end of the line.

I could hear his heavy, rhythmic breathing.

“You’re bluffing,” he said.

“August fourteenth,” I said. “The day I unlocked the box. The day your empire ends.”

I hung up the phone and took out the SIM card, dropping it into the console.

“He knows we have it,” Liam said.

“Let him know,” I said. “His time is up.”

Two hours later, we walked into the federal building downtown.

We were met by Special Agent Harris, a stern-faced woman who had been investigating the syndicate for three years.

We sat in a windowless interview room under bright fluorescent lights.

I laid the leather-bound book and the flash drive on the metal table.

“This is the complete financial record of Apex Development from its inception until five years ago,” I said.

“And this,” I added, tapping the flash drive, “contains the decryption keys for the offshore accounts.”

Agent Harris picked up the book, flipping through the pages with gloved fingers.

Her expression didn’t change, but her eyes widened slightly as she read the names.