Chapter 9 - The Mother’s Last Stand
It was a cold January night. Julian and Leo were finally healthy enough to walk around the estate. Clara was in the kitchen, warming up some milk for Maya.
Suddenly, the glass patio doors shattered.
Clara screamed, diving to the floor as a figure stepped through the broken glass, holding a silver revolver.
It was Eleanor. She looked deranged, her hair disheveled, her expensive coat soaked from the snow.
“You took everything from me!” Eleanor screamed, pointing the gun wildly at Clara. “You dirty, manipulating little maid! You ruined my son!”
Julian rushed into the kitchen, freezing when he saw his mother aiming a gun at his wife.
“Mother, put the gun down,” Julian said, his voice dangerously calm, stepping slowly between Eleanor and Clara.
“Move, Julian!” Eleanor shrieked. “She poisoned you! She made you slice yourself open for that rat child! I’m saving you!”
“They are my family,” Julian roared, his protective instincts overriding his fear. “Clara is my wife. And if you want to hurt her, you have to shoot me first.”
Eleanor’s hand trembled. She looked at her son, seeing the absolute, unyielding love in his eyes for the woman cowering behind him. She realized, in that terrifying moment, that she had completely lost. She didn't possess an ounce of the love or loyalty that Clara did.
Sobbing, Eleanor lowered the gun.
Julian’s security team burst into the room seconds later, tackling Eleanor to the ground.
May you like
As the police hauled his mother away—this time, for good—Julian turned and pulled Clara into a desperate, crushing embrace.
“It’s over,” Julian whispered into her hair as the sirens faded into the distance. “The past is dead, Clara. We are safe. I swear to you, we are finally safe.”
