Chapter 9 - The Breaking Point
Screams erupted throughout the courtroom as Arthur yanked six-year-old April out of her seat.
He wrapped a thick arm around her small chest and backed toward the heavy wooden doors.
“Nobody move!” Arthur roared, the polite facade completely stripped away, revealing the monster underneath.
He reached into his tailored suit jacket and pulled out a small, black handgun.
The bailiffs froze, their hands hovering over their holstered weapons, terrified of hitting the child.
Evelyn had already slipped out the doors moments before the video played, leaving him to face the fallout alone.
April was crying hysterically, her tiny hands clawing at her father’s iron grip.
“Arthur, let her go!” I shouted, taking a slow step toward him.
“You’re on camera, the whole room just watched you poison your wife. It’s over.”
Arthur waved the gun wildly toward the judge’s bench, his eyes wide and frantic.
“I’m not going to prison for that weak, pathetic woman!” he screamed, spittle flying from his lips.
“I deserve that money, I earned it putting up with her!”
Lucy and Rachel were huddled behind the social worker, crying out for their sister.
My heart pounded against my ribs like a sledgehammer.
I knew Arthur was a narcissist, but I hadn't realized he was truly a psychopath willing to kill his own daughter to escape.
“Let her go, and take me,” I pleaded, taking another step forward to draw his attention.
“You need a hostage, take the old man. I won't fight you.”
Arthur laughed, a harsh, unhinged sound that echoed off the high ceilings.
“You’d just slow me down, Charles,” he sneered, taking another step toward the exit.
He pushed the heavy door open with his back, the gun still pressed near April’s side.
Suddenly, Lucy broke away from the social worker and sprinted down the aisle.
She wasn't running at Arthur; she grabbed the heavy brass fire extinguisher mounted on the wall near the door.
With strength born of pure adrenaline, the twelve-year-old hurled the heavy red cylinder directly at Arthur's shins.
The metal tank smashed into his knees with a sickening crunch.
Arthur howled in pain, his legs buckling under the unexpected weight.
His grip on April loosened for a fraction of a second.
April dropped to the floor and scrambled away like a frightened rabbit.
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Arthur raised the gun toward Lucy, his face twisted in pure, homicidal rage.
A gunshot echoed through the room, deafeningly loud.
