Chapter 12 - The House of Other Victims
Mark's arrest triggered searches across multiple properties.
The Alexandria apartment revealed the scale of the operation.
Federal teams removed twenty-seven boxes of records.
They identified sixteen potential victims.
Seven had lost homes.
Four had entered bankruptcy.
Three were dead.
Two remained missing.
Laura spent weeks helping investigators interpret the financial structure.
It became a strange form of revenge.
Mark had spent years exploiting her skills without her knowledge.
Now those same skills were destroying him.
One pattern appeared repeatedly.
A victim owned valuable property.
A relative or partner entered their life.
Documents were forged.
Loans were created.
Debt increased.
Then ownership transferred through foreclosure or estate proceedings.
Mark was not always the direct participant.
Sometimes he introduced people.
Sometimes he created companies.
Sometimes he moved money.
But he had been involved for at least fifteen years.
Longer than his marriage.
Laura asked Mercer:
"Was I targeted from the beginning?"
Mercer hesitated.
"Yes."
She nodded.
She had expected the answer.
It still hurt.
Robert stood beside her.
Laura asked:
"Did he ever love me?"
Mercer looked uncomfortable.
Robert answered instead.
"Maybe in whatever way a man like that understands love."
Laura turned toward him.
"That's worse."
"I know."
The prosecution offered Mark a deal.
Life-adjacent sentencing exposure could potentially be reduced if he identified Crown and cooperated in the homicide investigations.
Mark refused.
Then federal prosecutors froze every account connected to Holloway Consulting.
Suddenly Mark's legal defense weakened.
The expensive attorneys left.
A public defender entered.
Three days later Mark requested a meeting.
Not with prosecutors.
With Laura.
Mercer advised against it.
Robert hated the idea.
Laura agreed.
She entered the detention interview room wearing a navy suit.
Mark looked smaller.
No designer jacket.
No expensive watch.
No carefully styled hair.
Just jail clothing and resentment.
He smiled.
"You look good."
Laura sat.
"You tried to kill my father."
"He wasn't supposed to find out."
She stared at him.
Mark realized what he had said.
Laura almost smiled.
"Still terrible under pressure."
"Laura..."
"Who is Crown?"
"I want immunity."
"You don't have anything worth immunity."
He leaned forward.
"You have no idea what your father owns."
"The mansion?"
Mark laughed.
"The mansion was never the target."
Laura's expression changed.
"What was?"
May you like
Mark's smile returned.
"The thing underneath it."
