Chapter 4 - THE SHADOW AT THE GATE
The sun began to set,
casting long,
bloody shadows across the bedroom floor.
I had spent the afternoon on the phone with my attorney,
confirming the irrevocable nature of the trust I had established.
The eight million dollars was no longer in a simple checking account.
It was locked behind layers of legal armor that Marcus couldn't even name,
let alone penetrate.
My phone buzzed on the nightstand.
It was a text from the security gate.
Unidentified vehicle at the entrance. Driver claiming to be Sebastian Hale.
I didn't hesitate.
Do not grant access. Call local PD for a disturbance.
I walked to the window and looked down at the long driveway.
I could see the faint glow of headlights through the trees.
A moment later,
the muffled sound of shouting reached my ears.
Then came the banging.
Not at the gate,
but at the front door of the house.
Marcus must have let him in through the pedestrian side-gate.
I felt a surge of cold fury.
Marcus had chosen his side.
He had betrayed the one boundary I had set.
I grabbed the folder and walked out of the bedroom,
my heart pounding in my throat.
As I reached the top of the stairs,
I saw them.
Sebastian was in the foyer,
his clothes disheveled,
his eyes wild and bloodshot.
He looked like a man who hadn't slept in a week.
Marcus was trying to calm him,
but his efforts were pathetic.
“Where is she?”
Sebastian roared,
his voice cracking.
“Where is my money?”
“It’s not your money, Sebastian!”
I shouted from the landing,
my voice echoing like a gavel.
They both looked up.
Sebastian pointed a shaking finger at me.
“You bitch!”
“I have people coming for me!”
“They’re going to kill me if I don’t pay by midnight!”
“Then perhaps you should have thought about that before you sat at the poker table,”
I said,
descending the stairs slowly.
“I am not your insurance policy.”
“I am not your bank.”
“And I am certainly not your savior.”
Sebastian lunged toward the stairs,
but Marcus finally found a spine and held him back.
“Seb,
stop!”
“She’s got the police on the way!”
“I don’t care!”
Sebastian screamed,
struggling against his brother.
“She’s sitting on eight million dollars while I’m going to end up in a ditch!”
I reached the bottom step and stood my ground.
“You chose the ditch, Sebastian.”
“My mother worked until her hands bled so I would never have to know men like you.”
“If I give you a single dollar,”
“I am spitting on her grave.”
“And I will never do that.”
The sound of sirens began to wail in the distance,
growing louder with every second.
The blue and red lights began to flash against the frosted glass of the front door.
Sebastian froze,
the reality of his situation finally piercing through his desperation.
“You called the cops?”
he whispered,
looking at me with pure disbelief.
“I told you I would,”
I said.
“Marcus,
you let him in.”
“You violated my safety.”
“You’re done.”
The front door burst open,
and two officers stepped into the foyer.
“We received a call about a domestic disturbance and trespassing,”
one of them said,
his hand resting on his belt.
I pointed at Sebastian.
“This man is not a resident here.”
“He is trespassing and has made verbal threats against my life.”
I then pointed at Marcus.
“And this man assisted him.”
Marcus looked at me,
his face pale with shock.
“Camila,
what are you doing?”
“I’m protecting my mother’s legacy,”
I said,
my voice steady as stone.
“Officers,
please remove them both.”
“I want them off the property immediately.”
Sebastian began to curse,
hurling insults as the officers gripped his arms.
Marcus stood there,
his mouth hanging open,
looking at the house he had lived in for years as if it were a foreign land.
“You can’t kick me out,”
he stammered.
“I’m your husband.”
“Not for long,”
I replied.
“The locks will be changed by morning.”
“Your things will be in the driveway in trash bags.”
As the police led them out,
the house felt suddenly,
wonderfully empty.
The air was still.
The greed was gone.
I walked back to the dining table and picked up the folder.
I looked at the photo of my mother I kept inside the front cover.
“I did it,
Mom,”
May you like
I whispered.
“They didn't get a cent.”
