Chapter 15 - The Predator and the Prey
The Lane Group headquarters was a hive of panic.
Employees were huddled in corners,
whispering about the news.
Security guards were looking at their phones,
wondering if they would still have a job in the morning.
The golden empire was tarnished,
the rot finally visible to the world.
I walked through the lobby,
the key from Arthur Sterling in my hand.
I didn't go to the reception desk.
I went straight to the elevators and swiped the key against the private sensor.
The elevator ascended silently,
the numbers climbing toward the penthouse office.
When the doors opened,
I found Michael sitting on the floor of his office.
Papers were scattered everywhere.
Files had been dumped from the cabinets.
He was looking for something.
He was looking for a way out.
"It’s not here,
Michael,"
I said,
stepping into the room.
"The truth isn't in those files."
He looked up,
his face a mask of desperation.
"Evelyn,"
he gasped.
"Please."
"I made a mistake."
"I was under so much pressure."
"The company was failing even before the incident."
"I did it for us."
"For our future."
I walked over to his desk and sat in the chair he had occupied for three years.
It was too large for him.
It had always been too large for him.
"You didn't do it for us,
Michael,"
I said,
my voice devoid of pity.
"You did it because you’re a small man who wanted to feel big."
"You thought that by taking my life,
you could become me."
"But you forgot one thing."
"You can't steal a soul."
He crawled toward me,
his hands grasping at the hem of my coat.
"I’ll give it all back."
"The money."
"The house."
"I’ll testify against Rachel."
"I’ll tell them she was the mastermind."
"I’ll tell them she manipulated me."
"Just help me,
Evelyn."
"Don't let me go to prison."
I looked down at him,
the man I had once loved,
the man I had promised to spend my life with.
I felt nothing.
No anger.
No sadness.
Just a cold,
clinical detachment.
"Rachel is already talking,
Michael,"
I lied.
"She called the DA an hour ago."
"She’s trading you for immunity."
Michael’s face went white.
"That bitch,"
he hissed.
"I knew it."
"I knew she’d turn."
He stood up,
his eyes filled with a sudden,
vicious resolve.
"I have recordings,
Evelyn."
"I have proof that she was the one who suggested the structural changes."
"I have proof that she was the one who moved the money."
"Give them to me,"
I said.
"And maybe I can talk to the board."
He ran to the safe in the wall,
his fingers trembling as he punched in the code.
He pulled out a black thumb drive and handed it to me.
"Here."
"Everything is on here."
"Just save me."
I took the drive and stood up.
"Thank you,
Michael."
"This will be very helpful."
"So,
you’ll help me?"
he asked,
a flicker of hope in his eyes.
I walked toward the door.
"I never said I’d help you,
Michael."
"I said I’d talk to the board."
"And I’m going to tell them that you’ve provided all the evidence they need to prosecute both of you."
The hope died in his eyes,
replaced by a hollow,
shattering realization.
"You…
you lied?"
"I learned from the best,"
I said,
pausing at the threshold.
"The police are in the lobby,
Michael."
"I’d suggest you straighten your tie."
"You wouldn't want to look unprofessional for your mugshot."
I walked out of the office and toward the elevator.
As the doors closed,
I heard him start to scream.
It was a sound of total,
unadulterated ruin.
I stepped out into the lobby just as the police officers were heading up.
I walked past them,
my head held high.
I walked out into the city,
the rain having finally stopped.
The sun was breaking through the clouds,
shining off the wet pavement like a promise.
I looked at the thumb drive in my hand.
The destruction was complete.
The empire was gone.
The traitors were in chains.
And for the first time in three years,
I could breathe.
But as I walked toward Julian’s waiting car,
I realized that the story wasn't over.
Revenge is a fire that leaves only ash.
And now,
I had to figure out what to build on the ruins of my life.
"Where to now?"
Julian asked as I climbed in.
I looked at the thumb drive,
then out at the horizon.
"To the hospital,"
I said.
"I want to see Rachel."
May you like
"I want to be the last thing she sees before the lights go out."
The game was in the ninth inning.
