Chapter 14 - THE CONCRETE PLANT
Evan wasn’t dead.
The first identification was wrong.
The body belonged to another Wallace employee, a foreman named Paul Grady who had disappeared six months earlier.
But the mistake revealed something worse.
Richard Wallace had been using the abandoned plant for years.
Police found burned records.
Weapons.
Cash.
And beneath a poured section of concrete—
human remains.
Thomas Bell.
By 3:00 a.m., the entire site glowed under portable floodlights.
Daniel stood behind a police line despite everyone telling him not to.
Pike approached.
“We found Bell.”
Daniel nodded.
“Richard?”
“No.”
“Evan?”
“In protective custody.”
“So Richard’s alone.”
“We think so.”
Daniel looked across the ruins.
“No.”
Pike frowned.
“No what?”
“He’s not alone.”
“How do you know?”
Daniel pointed toward the eastern building.
A light moved behind one broken window.
Pike reached for his radio.
Then a shot cracked.
Everyone dropped.
“Gun!”
Officers rushed for cover.
Another shot.
Concrete exploded near Pike’s shoulder.
Daniel crawled behind a barrier.
Collins shouted from twenty feet away.
“Shooter in the east structure!”
Pike yelled into his radio.
“Contain the perimeter!”
Daniel looked toward the building.
Richard.
It had to be.
A loudspeaker came alive.
“Richard Wallace! Come out with your hands visible!”
Silence.
Then Richard’s amplified voice came from somewhere inside.
“Daniel!”
Every officer looked at him.
Daniel’s stomach tightened.
Richard continued.
“Happy birthday!”
Pike cursed.
“Stay down.”
Richard laughed over the speaker.
“You wanted your life back, Danny?”
Daniel slowly stood behind the concrete barrier.
Pike grabbed his arm.
“What are you doing?”
“Talking.”
“Absolutely not.”
Richard shouted again.
“I know you’re out there!”
Daniel grabbed Pike’s loudspeaker.
“Yeah!”
Silence.
Then Richard answered.
“There he is.”
Daniel’s voice shook with rage.
“You burned my house.”
“You found something that wasn’t yours.”
“I gave it to you!”
“You remembered where you found it.”
“You destroyed my family because I remembered a wall?”
Richard laughed.
“You were convenient.”
That word hit harder than Daniel expected.
Convenient.
Three months stolen.
His children terrified.
His wife threatened.
His home burned.
Because he was convenient.
Daniel shouted, “Come outside!”
“What, so you can hit me?”
“No.”
Daniel looked toward Pike.
“I want to watch you get arrested.”
Silence.
Then Richard said, “You still think this ends with an arrest?”
Daniel heard something mechanical.
Pike heard it too.
His face changed.
“Everybody back!”
A deep boom shook the eastern structure.
Then another.
Explosions.
Not large.
Controlled.
Support columns.
The old building started collapsing.
“He’s bringing it down!” Collins shouted.
Dust exploded into the air.
Officers ran.
Daniel saw movement through the smoke.
A figure sprinting toward the rear fence.
“There!”
Daniel ran.
Pike shouted after him.
Daniel didn’t stop.
Richard reached the fence first.
Climbed.
Daniel grabbed his ankle.
Richard kicked him in the face.
Daniel fell.
Richard jumped down the other side.
Daniel climbed after him.
They crashed into a muddy drainage field.
Richard turned and swung.
Daniel ducked.
Hit him in the ribs.
Richard stumbled.
“You should’ve stayed in jail!”
Daniel punched him.
Richard fell.
Daniel climbed on top of him.
Three months of rage sat inside his fist.
Richard smiled through blood.
“Do it.”
Daniel raised his hand.
“Do it, Danny.”
Daniel heard Mateo’s voice in his head.
Are bad people always obvious?
He lowered his fist.
“No.”
Richard laughed.
“Coward.”
Daniel stood.
“No.”
Police rushed toward them.
Daniel looked down at the man who had tried to erase him.
“I’m a father.”
Pike cuffed Richard.
For the first time, Richard Wallace looked afraid.
Daniel turned away.
Then Richard shouted:
“Ask your detective who signed the warrant!”
Daniel stopped.
Pike froze.
Richard started laughing.
Daniel slowly turned around.
“What warrant?”
Nobody answered.
“What warrant, Pike?”
May you like
Pike looked at him.
And Daniel realized the nightmare still had one secret left.
