Chapter 15 - The Gunshot
The bullet struck the metal wall above us.
I pulled Lily to the floor and covered her with my body.
Police shouted from every entrance.
Victor backed toward the dock.
“Stay back!”
Detective Collins appeared behind a concrete support.
“Victor.”
“Put the gun down.”
He laughed wildly.
“You think I’m going to prison because Anna couldn’t leave anything alone?”
My entire body shook with rage.
Lily pressed her face against my chest.
Detective Collins kept her voice calm.
“Your niece is here.”
“Do not make this worse.”
Victor looked at Lily.
Something flickered across his face.
Shame.
Maybe love.
Maybe nothing.
Then he pointed the gun toward the water.
Not at us.
“I never meant for Anna to die.”
I shouted before anyone could stop me.
“But she did.”
His face twisted.
“I wanted her scared.”
“She was going to destroy everything.”
“She was protecting people you stole from.”
“You don’t understand.”
“You’re right.”
“I don’t understand how you watched your sister dying and searched her car.”
The words hit him.
His shoulders dropped.
For one second, I thought he would surrender.
Then he looked toward the open dock.
A speedboat floated outside.
He ran.
Police moved.
Victor jumped onto the boat.
Detective Collins followed along the dock.
The engine roared.
Then Victor made another mistake.
He looked backward.
The boat struck a mooring post.
He lost balance.
The gun fell into the water.
Officers reached him before he could recover.
Within seconds, Victor Hart was face down on the dock in handcuffs.
Lily began crying.
I held her tighter than I ever had.
“It’s over.”
This time, Detective Collins did not correct me.
At the hospital, Lily was examined again.
No injuries.
Just fear.
The family driver recovered.
Michael was arrested for his role in the false pickup call.
He had not known Victor intended to abduct Lily.
But he had given Victor information about my parents’ routines months earlier.
Every shortcut had become another weapon.
Victor was charged with kidnapping, financial crimes, conspiracy, obstruction, and offenses connected to Anna’s fatal crash.
Evelyn faced expanded charges.
Delaney faced corruption charges.
Michael accepted that his cooperation would not erase what he had done.
Then the forensic accountant called.
They had recovered almost all the money stolen from Lily’s trust.
Almost.
There was still $120,000 missing.
The money in the offshore account.
And the account holder had finally been identified.
May you like
It belonged to Anna.
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