The Thorne family had purchased a shield of absolute immunity.

They controlled the inspectors, the police, and the local courts.

“We can’t go to the local precinct with this,” Nora said.

“No,” I agreed. “We have to go straight to the federal prosecutor.”

“But we need the physical copy of the original drive to prove chain of custody,” she said.

I touched the pocket where the physical flash drive rested against my ribs.

“I need to put this somewhere safe,” I said.

“Your house?” Nora asked.

“No, it’s too obvious,” I said. “But my home security system is the only place I can monitor twenty-four hours a day.”

After Clara escaped Julian, I had spent thousands of dollars retrofitting my suburban house.

I installed motion sensors, reinforced steel deadbolts, and high-definition cameras.

The cameras fed directly to an encrypted app on my phone.

“I’ll hide the drive in the wall safe behind the pantry,” I said.

“If they find out you have it, they’ll send someone,” Nora warned.

“Julian won’t come himself,” I said. “He’s too careful about his public image.”