Chapter 13 - THE CHOICE
I saw the gun before Adrian did.
“Adrian!”
Victor fired.
Thomas fired too.
Victor’s hand jerked.
The bullet grazed Adrian’s arm.
His grip loosened.
Victor fell.
Three stories.
He hit the hood of a parked car below.
Nobody moved.
Rain hammered the roof.
Adrian sat back.
I crawled toward him.
“You’re bleeding again.”
“It’s a scratch.”
“You got shot yesterday.”
“Technically, that was several hours ago.”
“Not funny.”
“A little funny.”
I hit his shoulder.
He winced.
“Sorry.”
“That one hurt more than the bullet.”
Thomas picked up the ledger.
Sirens approached.
Real police this time.
Federal investigators too.
“What happens now?” I asked.
Thomas looked at the book.
“Now we burn half the city down.”
Metaphorically.
Mostly.
The ledger contained names nobody expected.
Judges.
Police captains.
Union bosses.
Executives.
Federal agents.
And Moretti employees.
Adrian read every page.
Then he handed it back to Thomas.
“Use it.”
Thomas stared.
“This destroys parts of your organization.”
“I know.”
“You could lose everything.”
“Not everything.”
Adrian looked at Leo, who had arrived downstairs with security.
Then he looked at me.
I understood.
Over the next three weeks, New York exploded.
Arrests.
Raids.
Resignations.
News helicopters.
Reporters outside Adrian’s townhouse.
Victor survived the fall.
Barely.
He was charged with kidnapping, conspiracy, attempted murder, racketeering, and enough other crimes to ensure he would spend the rest of his life fighting through courtrooms.
Julian was arrested too.
I visited him once.
He looked smaller behind glass.
“Why?” I asked.
He cried.
Not loudly.
That made it worse.
“My sister owed Victor money.”
“So you agreed to kill me?”
“I thought you’d get hurt. Not killed.”
I stared at him.
“That’s supposed to make me feel better?”
“No.”
“Good.”
He pressed his hand to the glass.
“I’m sorry.”
I walked away.
Some betrayals didn’t deserve closure.
Some people didn’t deserve forgiveness just because they finally felt guilty.
When I returned to Lumina to collect my things, my manager met me at the door.
“You’re fired.”
I laughed.
He looked offended.
“You disappeared during a shift.”
“I got stabbed by glass, kidnapped twice, shot at, and helped expose a corruption network.”
“You still violated company policy.”
That made me laugh harder.
“You know what?”
“What?”
“I quit.”
“You can’t quit after I fired you.”
“Watch me.”
I walked outside carrying my uniform in a paper bag.
Adrian was leaning against a black car.
“What are you doing here?”
“Waiting.”
“For me?”
“Yes.”
“You’re very confident.”
“No.”
That surprised me.
He stepped closer.
“I have absolutely no idea what I’m doing.”
“Wow. Adrian Moretti admitting uncertainty.”
“Don’t tell anyone.”
I smiled.
Then his expression became serious.
“I owe you.”
“No.”
“You saved Leo.”
“I don’t want money.”
“I know.”
“A job?”
“No.”
“A house?”
“No.”
“A car?”
“No.”
His frustration almost made me laugh.
“Then what do you want?”
I looked at him.
“For once?”
“Yes.”
“I want someone to ask me that without already deciding the answer.”
He went quiet.
Then he asked again.
“What do you want, Emma?”
May you like
I opened my mouth.
But before I could answer, a car across the street exploded.
