Chapter 14 - The Shot Nobody Expected
The first bullet struck the wall.
The second hit a server cabinet.
Julian shoved Abby and Caleb behind a concrete partition.
Celeste fired toward Voss.
Voss returned fire.
Neither was steady.
Both were injured or panicked.
Caleb shouted.
“Abby!”
“I’m here!”
She crawled toward him.
His wrists were still tied.
Julian pulled a folding knife from Sloan’s pocket.
He cut Caleb loose.
Another shot cracked.
Voss fell.
Celeste disappeared into the corridor.
Federal agents shouted from the stairwell.
Julian grabbed the cassette.
“Stay here.”
Abby caught his arm.
“No.”
“Celeste is running.”
“Let them catch her.”
“If she reaches the executive elevator, she has an underground exit.”
“Then tell them.”
Julian used Sloan’s radio.
But Celeste had disabled internal communications.
Abby looked at Caleb.
“You stay with Patricia.”
“Absolutely not.”
“Caleb.”
“You have spent twelve years telling me we are a team.”
“This is different.”
“It always becomes different when I want to help.”
Julian interrupted.
“Both of you are staying.”
They stared at him.
He almost looked offended.
“I have wanted to say that for days.”
Abby rolled her eyes.
Then alarms changed.
A mechanical voice announced evacuation.
Celeste had triggered the fire system.
Hundreds of employees and security personnel began moving.
Chaos.
Exactly what she needed.
Julian ran toward the executive staircase.
Abby followed.
“Abigail.”
“Stop wasting oxygen.”
He gave up.
They reached the lobby level.
People flooded toward exits.
Celeste was nowhere visible.
Then Abby saw a woman in a paramedic jacket.
White hair hidden beneath a cap.
Moving toward the garage.
“There.”
Julian turned.
Celeste saw them.
She ran.
Abby followed.
The underground garage echoed with alarms.
Celeste reached a black sedan.
She opened the door.
Julian caught up.
“Celeste.”
She turned with the gun.
Abby froze.
Julian raised both hands.
“It’s over.”
Celeste laughed.
“No.”
“Federal agents have the recording.”
A lie.
The cassette was still in Julian’s pocket.
But Celeste did not know.
Her expression changed.
“You copied it.”
“Of course.”
Another lie.
Maybe.
Abby hoped someone had.
Celeste backed toward the vehicle.
“You destroyed this family.”
Julian stared.
“You stole from sick children.”
“You killed Elena.”
“You poisoned my mother.”
“You framed innocent employees.”
Celeste screamed.
“I built this family!”
The sound echoed through the garage.
Abby realized Celeste genuinely believed it.
Celeste pointed at Julian.
“Your father was weak.”
“He inherited everything.”
“I did the work.”
“I created donors.”
“I built the foundation.”
“And then that old fool gave control to you.”
Julian’s expression was almost sad.
“So this was all about inheritance.”
Celeste’s eyes glittered.
“It was about justice.”
Abby said.
“No.”
Celeste looked at her.
Abby stepped closer.
“It was about price.”
Julian glanced at her.
Abby continued.
“You decided your pride was worth more than Elena’s life.”
“More than my mother’s name.”
“More than your own sister-in-law.”
“More than children who needed those donations.”
Celeste aimed at her.
“Be quiet.”
Abby’s heart pounded.
But she did not stop.
“You aren’t different from everyone Julian tested.”
“Abigail.”
Julian’s warning came softly.
She ignored him.
“You saw something you wanted.”
“And you took it.”
Celeste’s finger tightened on the trigger.
Abby said.
“You failed.”
Celeste fired.
Julian moved.
Abby heard the shot.
Then Julian hit the ground.
Everything stopped.
“Julian!”
Abby dropped beside him.
Blood spread across his shirt near the ribs.
Celeste stared.
For one moment, even she looked shocked.
Then she ran toward the car.
Abby pressed both hands against Julian’s wound.
“Look at me.”
His eyes opened.
“You’re shouting.”
“Good.”
She was crying now.
“Stay awake.”
Federal agents entered the garage.
Celeste’s car accelerated toward the exit.
Agents fired at the tires.
The vehicle swerved.
It slammed into a concrete barrier.
Airbags deployed.
Celeste survived.
Agents dragged her from the car.
Abby barely noticed.
Julian gripped her wrist.
“The tape.”
“What?”
“Pocket.”
She pulled the cassette from his coat.
“Don’t lose it.”
“I don’t care about the tape.”
“I do.”
“Julian.”
He gave the faintest smile.
“That is inconveniently touching.”
“Shut up.”
Paramedics arrived.
They moved Abby aside.
She refused until they physically separated her.
Julian was taken into surgery.
The bullet had missed his liver by less than two inches.
One fractured rib.
Significant blood loss.
But surgeons expected him to survive.
Abby sat beside Caleb in the hospital waiting room.
Her dress was covered in Julian’s blood.
Pearl was broken.
Her brother’s face was bruised.
Her father still believed she was simply working extra shifts.
Her life had become unrecognizable.
Caleb leaned against her shoulder.
“He likes you.”
Abby stared ahead.
“Don’t.”
“He took a bullet.”
“He moved.”
“Toward you.”
“Caleb.”
“I’m just saying.”
She looked at him.
He smiled faintly.
“I’m alive.”
Abby’s eyes filled.
She hugged him.
“You idiot.”
“Family trait.”
Hours later, Julian woke.
Abby entered the room.
His skin was pale.
He looked irritated by the hospital gown.
That reassured her.
“You look terrible.”
He opened his eyes.
“That seems to be everyone’s favorite greeting.”
She sat.
“You scared me.”
His expression softened.
“I’m sorry.”
“You should be.”
“I will try to schedule future gunshot wounds more conveniently.”
“Not funny.”
“A little.”
She looked away.
For several seconds, neither spoke.
Then Julian said.
“Celeste?”
“Arrested.”
“Voss?”
“Alive.”
“Leonard?”
“Also alive.”
“Patricia?”
“Alive.”
“Caleb?”
“Annoyingly alive.”
Julian exhaled.
“And my mother?”
“Stable.”
His eyes closed briefly.
Abby placed the cassette on the bedside table.
“Safe.”
Julian nodded.
Federal investigators copied it that morning.
They also recovered surveillance footage from Cross Tower.
Voss agreed to cooperate in exchange for consideration at sentencing.
He admitted sabotaging Elena’s car.
He admitted planting evidence against Marianne.
He admitted orchestrating many later employee frames.
And he implicated Celeste in all of it.
For the first time, it seemed over.
Then a detective entered Julian’s hospital room.
“Mr. Cross.”
Julian looked up.
“We have a problem.”
Abby’s stomach tightened.
“What?”
The detective held an evidence bag.
Inside was the cassette.
Julian frowned.
“That should be with federal investigators.”
“This is a copy.”
“What happened?”
“The original recording was examined.”
The detective paused.
“It has been edited.”
Abby stared.
“What?”
“There are splices.”
“Sections were removed years ago.”
Julian’s expression changed.
“Does that invalidate it?”
“It complicates things.”
“But Voss confessed.”
“Yes.”
“To Elena’s death.”
“Yes.”
“So?”
The detective’s expression remained serious.
“He claims Celeste ordered the killing.”
Abby said.
“She did.”
“Maybe.”
Julian narrowed his eyes.
“What are you not saying?”
The detective looked at him.
“The missing portion appears to contain another speaker.”
“Who?”
“We recovered fragments.”
He took out a transcript.
Julian read.
His face drained of color.
Abby took it.
The recovered audio fragment contained Gideon Cross’s voice.
Julian’s father.
And the words were devastating.
Martin, if Elena refuses the settlement, handle it.
No police.
No scandal.
Do what you need to do.
Abby stared at Julian.
Celeste had ordered Elena silenced.
But Gideon Cross might have done the same.
The dead patriarch Julian had spent days blaming for cowardice might have been something far worse.
May you like
And someone had deliberately removed that section from Marianne’s copy.
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