Chapter 8 - THE RIVER OF SECRETS
Julian and Elowen sprinted through the damp river ferns, the freezing autumn rain soaking through Julian’s dress shirt.
Behind them, shouting echoed from the cottage as flashlight beams cut through the pine trees.
"There they are! By the water!" a guard yelled.
Julian reached the wooden dock first, unhooking the heavy mooring rope from a small, fiberglass motorboat while Elowen climbed aboard and yanked the pull-cord of the outboard engine.
VROOOM!
The engine sputtered to life, churning the dark river water into white froth. Julian jumped into the stern, grabbing the tiller handle and slamming the throttle forward just as heavy rounds slapped into the riverbank, throwing up sprays of mud and water.
The skiff shot out into the middle of the Red River, leaving the searchlights and shouting guards behind in the dark mist.
Julian wiped rain from his face, looking back at the burning lights of his mother's cottage in the distance.
"They're going to burn everything in the house, aren't they?" Julian asked, his chest heaving.
"They can burn the papers in the living room, Julian," Elowen said, her face illuminated by the faint green glow of the boat's navigation light. "But they can't burn what’s inside the vault at the 4th Street warehouse."
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Julian frowned, steering the boat downriver toward the industrial harbor district. "The 4th Street warehouse was abandoned twenty years ago after the fire. It's owned by a holding company."
"It's owned by me," Elowen corrected softly. "Your father bought it in my name before he died. It was the only property Victor’s lawyers couldn't touch."
