Chapter 6 - The Corruption Protocol
By 4:00 a.m., the hospital was under full military lockdown.
Naval Security Forces stood guard at every exit. The attacker had been identified as an operative working for a disgraced defense contractor currently under federal investigation for selling faulty tactical equipment to the Navy—a contract Rear Admiral Alderton had canceled two weeks prior.
Inside an isolated observation room, Arthur Vance, the Vice President of Legal Affairs, was sitting with his hands resting on a table, staring at two NCIS investigators.
Beside them stood Sloan Ward and Dr. Evelyn Cross.
“The maintenance pass used by the attacker,” Sloan said, tossing a plastic security badge onto the desk, “was issued three hours ago from your office, Mr. Vance.”
Vance’s eyes darted frantically around the room. “I... I didn’t know! They told me it was an independent safety inspector inspecting the HVAC system! They offered a fifty-thousand-dollar donation to the hospital’s foundation!”
“You took a bribe to bypass background checks during a high-profile trauma admission,” Dr. Cross said, her voice filled with disgust. “You put every patient in this building at risk.”
“What about Marsh?” Sloan asked, stepping closer to the table.
Vance looked up, swallowing hard. “Franklin... Franklin didn’t know about the assassin. But he knew the airbag system on the Admiral’s vehicle was defective. The contractor paid Marsh’s private research fund two hundred thousand dollars to suppress the acoustic blast reports six months ago.”
The truth was out.
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Dr. Franklin Marsh hadn’t just been arrogant or incompetent downstairs—he had been terrified that Sloan’s investigation into Lily’s ear trauma would expose the fraudulent medical reports he had signed to protect his bribe money.
Ten minutes later, Dr. Franklin Marsh was escorted out of the emergency department in handcuffs, flanked by federal officers, as dozens of nurses, orderlies, and doctors watched in stunned silence.
