The marshals dragged my father out in handcuffs, his face pressed against the marble floor. Grant was sobbing uncontrollably, begging Vance to make a deal, but Vance had already backed away from the table, throwing his papers into his briefcase, looking at Grant with professional disgust.
As the courtroom aggressively emptied, Jenkins walked slowly up to the stand. She looked at the silver flash drive in my hand, then up at my face, her eyes wide with shock.
“You knew,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “You knew Vance was going to try and blackmail you with your parents, so you brought the nuclear option.”
“I brought the truth,” I said quietly, slipping the drive back into my pocket.
“The DOJ is going to indict your father by the end of the day, Lauren. Treason. Conspiracy. There’s no walking this back. They are all going down.”
I stood up, smoothing the front of my black suit, feeling the comforting weight of the Medal on my chest. “I know.”
