Chapter 10 - The Final Escape
The helicopter doors slid open, revealing heavily armed federal agents.
Nora had managed to activate a hidden distress beacon on her police radio during the chaos.
Roman watched through the security monitor as the FBI stormed the property.
Down in the garage, Nora drove the armored SUV out into the cool night air.
Dozens of agents surrounded the vehicle, lowering their weapons when they saw Nora's badge through the window.
Roman sat back in the control room chair, bleeding and exhausted.
He knew it was over.
The empire he had built, the criminal underworld he ruled, it was all finished.
Ten minutes later, heavily armed agents breached the security room and placed Roman in handcuffs.
He didn't resist.
As they led him down to the courtyard, he saw Nora holding Maisie near an ambulance.
Maisie was wrapped in a thick wool blanket, holding a paramedic's flashlight like a toy.
Nora looked at Roman, her expression complicated with guilt and gratitude.
Roman gave her a slow, respectful nod.
He had lost his freedom, but he had kept his promise to protect the child.
Six months later, the dust had finally settled.
Thanks to Nora's testimony regarding Roman saving her life, the judge showed extreme leniency.
Roman was given a suspended sentence in exchange for dismantling the syndicate and turning over Silas.
He was a free man.
Nora had retired from the police force, using the reward money to buy a quiet house near the coast.
The core nightmare of that burning shed was finally over, replaced by the peaceful sound of ocean waves.
Roman walked down the sandy beach, watching Maisie build a lopsided sandcastle near the water.
He smiled, feeling truly at peace for the first time in his life.
Then, Roman's burner phone buzzed in his pocket with a strange rhythm.
He pulled it out and opened a text message from an unknown number.
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It was a high-resolution photo of him, Nora, and Maisie on the beach, taken through a sniper's crosshairs.
The message below it simply read: "The true Boss never forgets."
