CHAPTER 20
Julian stood at the top of the stairs,
looking down at Marcus with an expression of pure,
undiluted hatred,
realizing his escape had been utterly thwarted.
"You think you've won,
Marcus?"
Julian shouted over the roar of the jet engines,
the rain soaking his silver hair and dripping down his pale face.
"Your father was a thief,
and you are no better than him,
you destroyed everything I built!"
"You destroyed yourself,
Julian,
the moment you brought my wife and child into your corrupt game,"
Marcus replied,
his voice steady and powerful,
easily cutting through the storm.
He held up the phone,
showing that the call was live,
recording every word for the federal authorities who were already surrounding the perimeter of the airfield.
Flashing red and blue lights appeared in the distance,
dozens of police cruisers tearing down the access roads,
their sirens wailing in the night air.
Julian looked around,
seeing the walls closing in on him,
and realized there was no escape,
no hidden account left to bribe his way out of this final trap.
He dropped the briefcase,
the latches breaking open upon impact with the wet tarmac,
sending stacks of high-denomination bills floating away into the puddles.
He raised his hands in defeat,
his shoulders slumping as the fight finally drained from his aging body,
leaving him looking small and pathetic.
Marcus watched silently as federal agents rushed forward,
tackling the former billionaire to the ground and clicking heavy steel handcuffs around his wrists.
As Julian was dragged away toward a waiting police van,
screaming curses into the rainy night,
Marcus felt a massive weight lift from his shoulders.
The war that had spanned generations,
the legacy of corruption that his father had created,
was finally over,
cleansed by the absolute truth.
He turned his back on the airfield,
May you like
walking back to his vehicle,
knowing that his only remaining destination was the family waiting for him in Geneva.
