CHAPTER 23
The tension in the room was suffocating,
every second feeling like an eternity.
"You think this ledger will save you,
Julian,"
I asked,
trying to keep him talking.
"Your financial network is completely dead,
and your name is ruined worldwide."
"Even with these names,
you have nowhere left to run."
"Shut up,"
he screamed,
his hand trembling as he gripped the pistol.
"You know nothing about power,
Emily!"
"Governments fall,
economies crash,
but the men on this list always survive!"
"They will protect me,
they will rebuild my empire!"
Liam moved slightly to the left,
drawing Vance's eyes away from the ceiling glass.
"The federal agents are already in the building,
Vance,"
Liam warned,
his voice calm and commanding.
"It is over,
just drop the weapon."
"Never,"
Vance roared,
turning the gun toward Liam.
In that split second of distraction,
the glass ceiling shattered into a thousand pieces.
Tactical agents dropped down from ropes,
flashbang grenades exploding with a deafening roar.
The room was filled with blinding white light,
and thick smoke rolled across the floor.
Vance fired blindly into the smoke,
the sound of gunshots echoing off the walls.
I lunged toward the closest hostage,
cutting their ropes with a pocket knife.
Liam tackled Vance from behind,
forcing the weapon out of his hand.
The gun skittered across the marble floor,
landing near my feet.
Vance struggled like a wild animal,
but three tactical agents pinned him down.
The handcuffs clicked shut around his wrists,
ending his reign of terror forever.
The smoke began to clear,
revealing the safe and unharmed hostages.
Julian Vance looked up from the floor,
his face smeared with dust and defeat.
"This isn't the end,"
he spat,
staring at me with pure venom.
"The Syndicate will find you,
Emily."
"Let them try,"
I replied,
looking down at him with absolute disdain.
"Because next time,
I will be waiting for them."
They dragged him away,
his curses fading down the hallway.
I dropped the gun,
falling into Liam's arms as the adrenaline faded.
May you like
The final shadow of my father's past,
had been dragged into the light.
