Chapter 4 - The Walls Close In
“You can't do this,”
Gavin whimpered,
backing away until he hit the front door.
“It was just a mistake.
I was going to put the money back.”
I laughed,
a cold,
humorless sound that echoed through the quiet neighborhood.
“You were going to kill my daughter for a payout,
Gavin.”
Just then,
the sound of sirens began to wail in the distance,
growing louder with every passing second.
Multiple black SUVs turned the corner,
tires screeching as they surrounded the property.
It wasn't just local police;
it was the federal task force I had alerted.
Gavin looked around wildly,
searching for an escape that didn't exist.
“Run if you want,”
I told him,
crossing my arms.
“But my team is in the woods behind your house.
They’re bored,
and they’d love a reason to practice their tackling.”
He fell to his knees on the porch,
sobbing like a child.
The officers swarmed the lawn,
weapons drawn but held at the low ready.
Poppy stepped out of the lead vehicle,
looking at me with a nod of profound respect.
“Colonel,
the perimeter is secure,”
he announced,
purposefully using my rank in front of the broken man.
Gavin looked up at me,
snot running down his nose,
his expensive shirt stained with sweat.
“Colonel?”
he whispered,
his voice cracking.
“You were just...
you were just a grandmother.”
“I am a grandmother,”
I corrected him,
watching as the officers hauled him to his feet and snapped the cuffs on his wrists.
“And a grandmother will do anything to protect her cubs.”
I watched them lead him away,
reading him his rights as the neighbors began to peek out from behind their curtains.
The secret was out now,
but not the one Gavin had intended.
The neighborhood didn't see an ugly secret,
they saw a reckoning.
I walked back to my truck,
refusing to look at him one last time.
He wasn't worth the energy of a final glance.
I had a phone call to make to a specialized legal team that would ensure Zoe’s fund was restored tenfold.
With Gavin’s illegal assets seized,
there was plenty to go around for the victims he had scammed.
I started the engine,
May you like
feeling the weight of the years finally begin to settle into a peaceful rest.
The war was over.
