Chapter 6 - The Standoff
The sight of the gun stopped me dead in my tracks.
The freezing wind whipped my hair across my face as I stared down the barrel of my mother’s weapon.
“I told you not to follow me, Claire!” my mother screamed over the whining roar of the jet engines.
Harper used the momentary distraction to bite down violently on my mother’s hand.
My mother shrieked in pain, dropping Harper’s wrist and stumbling backward against the railing.
“Run, Harper!” I yelled at the top of my lungs.
Harper didn't hesitate; she scrambled down the metal stairs and sprinted desperately toward Marcus, who pulled her safely behind the engine block of his car.
Now, it was just me and the woman who had destroyed my entire life.
“It’s over, Mom,” I shouted, pointing toward the flashing red and blue lights rapidly approaching the airfield gates.
“The FBI is here, and they know everything about Dad, and they know what you did to Michael.”
Her hand trembled, but she kept the gun pointed directly at my chest.
“Michael was going to ruin everything,” she sneered, her eyes wide and manic.
“He found the old bank statements in the attic, and he started asking too many questions.”
“He was going to take you away from me, Claire.”
I felt a sickening wave of revulsion wash over me.
“You murdered my husband because you were afraid of losing control,” I said, my voice surprisingly steady.
“You are a psychopath.”
“I am a mother who protected her assets!” she screamed back defensively.
“Your father was going to leave me with nothing, and Michael was going to send me to prison.”
The wailing sirens grew deafening as half a dozen armored police vehicles smashed through the airfield chain-link fence.
They swarmed the tarmac, heavily armed tactical officers pouring out and aiming assault rifles at the stairs.
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“Drop the weapon and put your hands in the air!” a voice boomed over a powerful megaphone.
My mother looked around at the laser sights dancing across her chest, realizing her escape route was completely gone.
