Chapter 247

Chapter 247
Stella's POV

Logan's face brightened. "Really? Awesome. I wasn't sure if I grabbed the right stuff."

"You didn't even look at these?"

"I mean, I glanced at them. But it's all financial jargon and legal bullshit. That's not really my thing." He took a sip of coffee, watching me over the rim of his mug. "Why? Should I have?"

I set the papers down carefully, my hands still trembling. "No. It's fine. This is perfect."

For a moment, I just looked at him. Logan, who'd handed me ammunition against his own father without even understanding what he was giving me. Who trusted me so completely that he'd commit a felony without asking questions.

Who was going to be devastated when he realized what I'd done with this information.

"Do you want me to put the other stuff back?" Logan asked. "Or should I bring it all here? There's a lot more."

"No." I forced myself to focus. "Don't go back there. Not for a while."

His expression shifted, some of the lightness fading. "Is something going to happen?"

"Yes." There was no point in lying about this. "Something very big. And I need you to stay away from the Mellon estate until it's over."

Logan set his mug down slowly. "How big are we talking?"

I thought about the evidence in my hands, the anonymous tip I was about to file with the SEC, the investigation that would tear through Mellon Aerospace & Defense like a wildfire.

"Big enough that Victor won't see it coming."

For a long moment, Logan just stared at me. Then he nodded, something like resignation crossing his face. "Okay. I trust you."

Those words shouldn't have hurt as much as they did.

I spent the rest of the morning organizing everything I had. The documents from Logan's father's safe. The recordings from Vivian's bedroom. The evidence of the CrestCore Pharma disaster.

When I laid it all out, the pile of materials weighed sixteen pounds. Sixteen pounds of proof that Victor Mellon had built his empire on fraud, theft, and murder.

I packaged it carefully, printed out a detailed summary, and prepared an anonymous submission to the Securities and Exchange Commission. To the FBI. To the Department of Defense, since Mellon Aerospace held government contracts.

I hit send on all three at once.

Then I sat back and waited for the world to burn.

It took less than forty-eight hours.

Federal agents showed up at Mellon Aerospace & Defense headquarters on a Tuesday morning, walking past the security desk and straight into Victor's office. They escorted him out in handcuffs in front of hundreds of employees, cameras flashing as reporters who'd somehow gotten wind of the raid crowded the lobby.

I watched it on the news from Logan's couch, my phone in one hand. The headline scrolled across the bottom of the screen: Defense Contractor CEO Arrested on Fraud Charges.

Logan sat beside me, very still. He hadn't said a word since the breaking news alert had come through.

"Stella." His voice was quiet. "Did you do this?"

I could have lied. Should have lied. But I was so tired of pretending.

"Yes."

He nodded slowly, still staring at the screen. Victor's face flashed across it—shocked, furious, already yelling at his lawyers. "Good."

I turned to look at him. "Good?"

"He deserves it." Logan's jaw was tight. "They all do. For what they did to you. For what they did to your family."

Something in my chest loosened. I'd expected anger, betrayal, maybe even hatred. Instead, Logan just looked tired.

"I'm sorry," I said.

"Don't be." He finally met my eyes. "I meant what I said. I'm on your side. Even if it means watching my family fall apart."

I didn't know what to say to that. So I just took his hand and squeezed.

My phone buzzed. A message from Ghost, my darknet contact.

Got a lead on your guy River. Last known location: Vancouver. Sending details now.

I stared at the message, then at the TV, then at Logan's profile.

For the first time since this whole nightmare began, I felt something like hope.

Victor was going down. Vivian was going down. And soon, I'd have the final piece of evidence I needed to prove what they'd done to my grandmother.

Justice was coming.

And I was going to make sure it arrived with teeth.