Chapter 6 - Scorched Earth
"Get out of the house, Devin," Andre said, his voice dropping into a register of cold, tactical authority. "Take your phone, walk down the street to the park, and do not go back inside."
"Dad, she’s losing her mind," Devin whispered into the mic, background noises of slamming metal and shattering glass audible over the cellular connection. "She’s dumping lighter fluid on the pile right now!"
"Devin. Listen to me. Walk out the front door. Right now. I'm ten minutes away."
Andre ended the call, turned to Maya, and put his hand on her shoulder. "Get back in the truck, Maya. Buckle up."
"Is she hurting Devin?" Maya asked, panic spiking in her voice.
"No. She’s trying to hurt me," Andre said grimly as he put the truck in reverse and spun the tires against the gravel, shooting rocks across the empty lot.
He didn't speed recklessly, but he drove with the brutal efficiency of a man who knew every shortcut through the county. In eight minutes flat, the F-150 rounded the corner of their quiet cul-de-sac.
A thick plume of black, acrid smoke was already drifting lazily above the terracotta roof tiles of their two-story suburban home.
Andre pulled into the driveway, blocking Tanya’s Audi SUV. "Maya, stay in the truck. Lock the doors from the inside. Do not open them for anyone except me or the police. Understand?"
"Yes, Dad."
Andre stepped out of the truck. He didn't run. He walked with long, deliberate strides down the side gate, kicking it open with a single blow from his boot.
In the backyard, by the stone patio, Tanya was standing over a roaring copper fire pit. She was holding a plastic gallon jug of Kingsford lighter fluid in one hand and an armful of thick manila folders in the other.
At her feet lay Andre’s heavy metal document safe, its electronic keypad smashed into pieces with a claw hammer that lay discarded on the grass.
"Burn it all!" Tanya screamed when she saw him, her hair wild, her eyes bloodshot and manic. "You want to take the liquid cash? You want to leave me with the mortgage? Let's see how well you do when your LLC records, your titles, and your mother’s probate papers are ashes!"
She tossed another stack of files into the flames. The paper caught instantly, orange sparks spiraling up into the clear blue California sky.
"You're committing a felony, Tanya," Andre said, standing five feet away from her, his hands resting easily at his sides. He didn't lunge for the fire. He didn't scream.
"I don't care!" she shrieked, splashing another stream of chemical accelerant onto the flames. WHOOSH. A ball of fire surged four feet into the air. "I built this life! You don't get to walk away and leave me looking like a fool!"
"I'm not walking away empty-handed," Andre said, lifting his phone.
The small red light on the top corner was blinking.
"I’ve been livestreaming to my cloud server since I stepped out of the truck," Andre said calmly. "Every document you burned, the hammer, the destruction of personal property, and the arson within city limits. It’s all archived."
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Tanya froze. The plastic jug slipped from her fingers, thudding onto the grass.
Behind them, the distinct, high-pitched wail of police sirens began to echo through the quiet streets of the neighborhood.
