Chapter 10 - The New Dawn
Alejandro Navarro smiled, raising a heavy machine gun to execute my entire family.
I pushed Clara and my daughters behind the solid stone altar, knowing I was far too injured to fight them all.
I looked at the heavy industrial tape Clara had used to secure Patricia's explosive detonator, which she had placed on a pew near the entrance.
I pulled out my customized pistol, aimed carefully at the taped detonator, and fired my final bullet.
The bullet struck the tape, releasing the dead-man's switch and triggering a massive, targeted explosion at the front of the church.
The blast instantly incinerated Navarro and his front line of cartel soldiers, collapsing the heavy stone ceiling directly onto the rest of his men.
The thick stone of the altar shielded us completely from the deadly shockwave and debris.
When the dust finally settled, the Navarro cartel had been permanently wiped off the map.
Six months later, I officially dismantled my criminal syndicate and turned my assets over to legitimate charities.
I married Clara in a small, private ceremony, deeply in love with the woman who had saved our lives.
We bought a beautiful, heavily guarded ranch in Montana, far away from the violence of Houston.
I finally became the father Avery and Sophie deserved, and we lived our days in absolute peace.
Everything was perfect, and the dark ghosts of my violent past seemed completely gone forever.
Then, the morning mail arrived.
I opened a plain white envelope containing a recent, time-stamped photograph of our new Montana ranch.
May you like
Standing perfectly visible in the trees near our fence was my deceased wife, Madeline, looking older but undeniably alive.
On the back of the photograph, written in her unmistakable handwriting, were the words: "I am coming to take my daughters back."
