Chapter 6 - The Ultimate Betrayal
Vanessa held her thumb aggressively over the red button of the detonator.
"I rigged the gas lines in the basement an hour ago," she sneered, confirming my worst fears.
I stood protectively in front of Harper, calculating our extremely slim chances of survival.
"You are going to blow yourself up too, Vanessa," I pointed out, hoping to appeal to her logic.
Vanessa laughed, a harsh, grating sound that lacked any genuine humor.
"I have nothing left to lose because Graham secretly tipped off the cartel we stole from," she revealed.
My heart completely stopped at the mention of a violent criminal cartel.
Graham hadn't just embezzled from his tech company.
He had been laundering money for organized crime, and he blamed the missing funds on Vanessa.
"The FBI arresting him tonight actually saved his pathetic life from the hitmen," Vanessa explained bitterly.
She demanded that I hand over the heavy backpack filled with the stolen millions.
I slowly picked up the canvas bag, feeling the immense weight of the cursed cash.
I tossed it carefully onto the floor near her expensive leather boots.
Vanessa smiled victoriously and bent down to pick up her massive prize.
At that exact moment, Leo groaned and suddenly grabbed his mother's ankle from the hallway floor.
"You promised we would leave the country together, Mom," Leo choked out, still dazed.
Vanessa looked down at her own son with an expression of absolute disgust.
"You were just a pawn to extort Graham, you foolish boy," she spat cruelly.
She kicked her son violently in the chest, freeing her leg from his desperate grasp.
The sheer evil of a mother abandoning her child gave me the adrenaline I desperately needed.
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I dove across the desk and tackled Vanessa hard to the floor.
The remote detonator flew from her hand and slid perfectly into the roaring fireplace grate.
