Chapter 1 - The Narrow Escape
Julian and the brunette walked directly toward the concrete pillar where I was hiding.
My heart hammered so violently against my ribs that I was certain they could hear the thumping.
I took a slow, calculated step backward and pressed my spine flat against the cold airport wall.
They passed by me with less than a foot of distance between us.
Julian was too busy whispering sweet promises into the woman's ear to notice his own wife standing in the shadows.
I waited until they disappeared through the sliding glass doors of the terminal before I finally let out my breath.
I did not panic.
I did not cry.
I walked calmly to my car, got inside, and locked the doors.
My countermove had actually begun three weeks ago when I first noticed Julian's sudden obsession with my father's property.
I had secretly hired a private investigator who quickly uncovered Julian's massive, hidden gambling debts.
The legal documents he thought I had blindly signed were actually expertly forged replicas prepared by my attorney.
I had replaced the real property deeds with deceptive papers that legally bound Julian's own corporate assets instead.
I started my engine and decided to head straight to Julian's downtown office to retrieve the final piece of evidence.
If I could secure his private laptop before he realized what was happening, his entire financial empire would crumble by morning.
I drove through the busy Denver streets, my mind racing with the precise details of my impending revenge.
When I arrived at his private office building, the underground parking garage was suspiciously empty.
I used a spare executive access card that Julian did not know I possessed.
The elevator ride to the top floor felt like an absolute eternity.
I stepped out into the dark, silent hallway and quietly made my way to his executive suite.
The heavy mahogany door was slightly ajar, casting a thin slice of yellow light onto the carpet.
I pushed the door open, expecting to find the clean, empty desk where he always kept his computer.
Instead, the luxurious office was completely destroyed.
Important financial papers were scattered everywhere, and the heavy glass desk had been shattered into hundreds of pieces.
Standing in the center of the destruction was a tall man wearing a dark ski mask.
He held Julian's silver laptop in one hand and a heavy steel crowbar in the other.
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The intruder slowly turned his head and locked his terrifying gaze directly on me.
He raised the metal crowbar into the air and charged straight toward my face.
