Chapter 9 - The Ultimatum
I swung the heavy bronze lamp as hard as I could, striking the second man directly in the shoulder.
He grunted in pain and stumbled backward, giving me enough time to push Camille toward the bedroom.
"Lock the door!" I screamed at her.
The larger man lunged forward, grabbing me roughly by the collar of my designer suit.
Before he could drag me out into the hallway, the sound of heavy tactical boots echoed up the stairs.
Four Halden Vale private security contractors, armed and wearing bulletproof vests, swarmed the corridor.
They aggressively tackled the two syndicate thugs to the floor, pinning them down with brutal efficiency.
Two uniformed police officers arrived seconds later, drawing their weapons and taking control of the chaotic scene.
I stood against the wall, breathing heavily but completely unharmed.
The lead security contractor checked on me while the police placed the thugs in heavy steel handcuffs.
"Ms. Prescott, Ingrid sends her regards," the contractor said politely.
An hour later, I arrived back at the logistics firm headquarters escorted by police and my new security detail.
My parents were already waiting in the lobby, surrounded by federal fraud investigators.
My mother looked completely disheveled, her arrogant mask finally shattered into a million pieces.
My father was openly weeping, begging the agents to let him explain the missing money.
When they saw me walk through the glass doors, my mother desperately lunged toward me.
"Marlo, please, you have to tell them you authorized the transfers!" she shrieked hysterically.
"You tried to hand me over to violent criminals to pay for your gambling addiction," I said with absolute disgust.
"We are family, you owe us!" she screamed as an officer pulled her back.
"I owe you absolutely nothing," I replied coldly.
I handed the lead investigator the complete audit report detailing my father's embezzlement.
"Arrest them both," I instructed the officer.
My father fell to his knees in the middle of the lobby, sobbing uncontrollably.
My mother cursed my name loudly as they dragged her out to the waiting squad cars.
I watched them leave, feeling the heavy chains of my traumatic childhood finally break away from my soul.
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Suddenly, a loud, sharp popping sound echoed from the parking lot outside.
I turned around just in time to see my father collapse onto the pavement, clutching his chest.
