Chapter 9 - The Confession
Absolute chaos erupted in the mansion as the horrifying truth echoed through the grand ballroom.
The news cameras flashed continuously, capturing every single angle of Michael holding the deadly weapon.
Michael dropped the gun instantly, his face turning ghostly pale with absolute terror as he realized what he had done.
The wealthy donors and politicians began shouting in outrage, stepping away from the study in sheer disgust.
The sound of police sirens immediately filled the night air, completely surrounding the massive estate.
A dozen officers rushed into the room, led by the honest policeman who had let me escape in the woods earlier.
He aggressively shoved Michael against the mahogany desk and locked heavy steel handcuffs around his wrists.
Eleanor Hayes tried to quietly slip out the back entrance, but two officers intercepted her at the door.
They arrested the matriarch in front of her high-society friends, publicly humiliating her forever.
Victoria shrieked hysterically, attempting to run toward the open French windows to escape into the garden.
A female officer tackled her to the ground, securing her wrists while loudly reading her the Miranda rights.
The Hayes family empire had completely crumbled in a matter of seconds before my very eyes.
I did not stay to watch them being dragged away into the waiting police cruisers.
I ran out the front door, sprinted down the street to my car, and drove as fast as I could back to the church.
When I opened the heavy wooden doors of the rectory, Noah was sitting quietly on a wooden bench.
He saw my face, dropped his comic book onto the floor, and ran toward me as fast as his cast would allow.
I fell to my knees and caught him, holding him so tightly I felt his tiny heart beating against mine.
He buried his face in my neck, crying happy, relieved tears onto my shoulder.
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"Mom," he whispered for the very first time in his life.
For the first time in five years, the heavy weight in my chest entirely vanished.
