Chapter 13 - THREE BULLETS
Elena stared at Daniel as if she had seen a ghost.
“You’re alive.”
“Disappointed?”
“I thought you drowned.”
Daniel smiled.
“Almost.”
Arthur moved slightly toward Maria.
Daniel noticed.
“Don’t.”
He raised a second pistol.
Arthur stopped.
Elena’s gun remained pointed at the floor.
“You left me in that fire,” she said.
Daniel shrugged.
“You were becoming unpredictable.”
“I gave you everything.”
“You gave me access.”
“You said we were leaving together.”
“I say lots of things.”
Elena looked shattered.
Arthur felt no satisfaction watching it.
Only exhaustion.
Daniel looked at Arthur.
“Key.”
Arthur held it up.
“You’ve got fourteen million.”
“Not anymore.”
“What?”
Daniel’s smile vanished.
“The bank froze it.”
Arthur almost laughed.
“Good.”
“So now I need the ledger destroyed and enough money to disappear.”
“The ledger isn’t here.”
“I know.”
Daniel pointed at the key.
“That’s why you’re going to bring it to me.”
Maria stared at him.
“You’ll never reach the bank.”
Daniel looked at her.
“You’re still talking.”
“Yes.”
“Bad habit.”
He raised the gun.
Arthur stepped in front of Maria.
“Point it at me.”
Daniel grinned.
“Still playing hero.”
“No. Just tired of watching cowards threaten people who can’t fight back.”
Daniel’s eyes hardened.
Elena whispered, “He’s right.”
Everyone turned toward her.
Daniel frowned.
“What?”
Elena looked at him.
“You used me.”
Daniel rolled his eyes.
“Oh, please.”
“You were going to let me go to prison.”
“If necessary.”
“You said you loved me.”
Daniel laughed.
The sound destroyed something inside her.
“You actually believed that?”
Elena raised her gun.
Daniel aimed at her instantly.
Arthur shouted, “Elena, don’t!”
Daniel fired.
The gunshot exploded through the factory.
Elena fell.
Maria screamed.
Arthur charged.
Daniel fired again.
The bullet tore through Arthur’s shoulder.
Pain knocked him sideways.
But momentum carried him into Daniel.
Both men crashed to the floor.
Daniel’s gun slid away.
Arthur punched him with his good arm.
Daniel grabbed a metal pipe and swung.
Arthur ducked.
The pipe smashed into the concrete.
Maria struggled against the chair.
“Elena! Elena!”
Elena lay on her side, bleeding from the abdomen.
Still conscious.
She reached for her gun.
Daniel saw her.
He kicked Arthur away and ran toward it.
Elena lifted the weapon with trembling hands.
Daniel stopped.
“You won’t shoot me.”
Elena was crying.
“You took my son from me.”
“You did that yourself.”
Her hand shook harder.
Arthur saw Warren’s officers appearing silently on the upper catwalk.
Not yet.
Too far.
Daniel took one step toward Elena.
“Give me the gun.”
“No.”
“Elena.”
“No.”
He lunged.
A third gunshot cracked through the building.
Daniel stopped.
His eyes widened.
Then he looked down.
Blood spread across his shirt.
Elena’s gun fell from her hand.
Daniel collapsed.
Police rushed in.
“WEAPON DOWN!”
Arthur crawled toward Maria and cut her restraints with a piece of broken metal.
She fell into his arms.
“Your shoulder!”
“I’m okay.”
“You’re bleeding.”
“So are you.”
Behind them, Warren kicked Daniel’s weapon away.
Paramedics rushed toward Elena.
Daniel groaned.
Alive.
Barely.
Arthur looked at him.
All that betrayal.
All that greed.
And it ended on a dirty factory floor.
Elena grabbed Arthur’s sleeve.
He looked down.
Her face had turned gray.
“Arthur…”
“Don’t talk.”
“Noah.”
Arthur’s expression hardened.
“Don’t use him now.”
Tears rolled into her hair.
“Tell him…”
She gasped.
“Tell him I’m sorry.”
Arthur looked away.
“I won’t make him responsible for forgiving you.”
Elena sobbed.
“I love him.”
Arthur finally looked at her.
“Then live.”
She blinked.
“What?”
“Live. Go to court. Tell the truth. Face what you did.”
Sirens screamed outside.
Arthur stood with Maria’s help.
Then Warren walked toward them holding Daniel’s phone.
His expression was grim.
“We have another problem.”
Arthur stared at him.
“What now?”
Warren showed him the screen.
A countdown timer was running.
00:18:42.
Arthur frowned.
“What is that?”
Warren opened Daniel’s banking app.
A scheduled command.
If not canceled within eighteen minutes, every compromised company account would be automatically emptied into offshore wallets.
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Total exposure:
$63 million.
