Chapter 9 - The Reckoning
"Derek Vance?" Marcus called out, stepping forward with his federal badge displayed clearly in his palm.
Derek froze, his face draining of all color. He looked at the federal agents, then at the badge, and finally at our vehicle as the front passenger door opened and I stepped out onto the driveway.
The look on Derek’s face was a masterpiece of absolute terror and disbelief.
"Elena?" he whispered, his voice cracking. "How... how are you...?"
"Did you really think your little spreadsheet was foolproof, Derek?" I asked, walking slowly toward him across the concrete where he had kissed my forehead less than five hours ago. "Did you really think you could trade our lives for a payout and walk away?"
"Elena, listen to me, I was set up—some men came to the house, I was forced—" Derek stammered, his polished corporate persona completely disintegrating into a pathetic, sweating mess of excuses.
"Save it for a federal judge, Mr. Vance," Marcus interrupted coldly, stepping behind Derek and snapping heavy steel handcuffs around his wrists. "You are under arrest for wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy to commit arson, and solicitation of attempted murder."
As they pushed Derek down toward the back of the SUV, he looked back at me one last time—not with anger, but with a desperate, pleading gaze that expected me to save him.
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I didn't say a word. I just watched him get pushed into the back of the vehicle, the heavy door slamming shut with a solid, final click.
The nightmare was over. The trap he had built for us had swallowed him whole.
