Chapter 10 - The Horizon
The ocean breeze felt incredibly warm as I sat on the spacious wooden deck of my new beachfront home.
I sipped a glass of expensive red wine and watched the sun slowly dip below the vibrant horizon.
The television in the living room played a quiet news report announcing Julian's official sentencing.
He had received forty-five years in federal prison without the possibility of parole.
My parents were both serving ten-year sentences in a minimum-security facility for their role in the financial scheme.
Justice had been served flawlessly, and I had built a beautiful, meaningful life from the ashes of my trauma.
Mara called to congratulate me on the final verdict, laughing about how perfectly our desperate plan had worked.
I thanked her for saving my life and promised to visit her in the city for a celebratory dinner next weekend.
I closed my eyes, listening to the rhythmic crashing of the waves, feeling completely and utterly safe.
The heavy wooden gate at the edge of my property suddenly creaked open in the evening wind.
I turned my head and saw a thick, black envelope resting perfectly on the center of my patio table.
May you like
I opened it with trembling fingers and found a single, terrifying photograph of my new house taken from the beach.
A handwritten note attached to the photo read, "Julian's debt is settled, but your incredible talent belongs to the syndicate now."
