Chapter 10 - THE SHOWDOWN AT THE DOOR
The room went dead quiet save for the heavy patter of rain against the large living room windows.
Vanessa looked from the attorney to the medical examiner, then finally to Ethan, who stood near the foot of the stairs. His tall, broad frame was completely relaxed, his rugged square jaw set, his blue-gray eyes watching her with terrifying calm.
She realized in a single, terrifying instant that the trap she had carefully constructed over three weeks had just collapsed around her ankles.
The front door clicked open. Two county sheriff’s deputies stepped into the entryway, their yellow rain slickers dripping onto the hardwood floor.
"Vanessa Reed?" the senior deputy asked, pulling a folded legal document from his belt. "We have an emergency protection order issued by the probate court. You are ordered to step away from the minors, surrender all estate keys, and vacate these premises immediately."
Vanessa’s lip curled into a bitter, malicious sneer. She looked at Ethan, her composure finally shattering into raw, unadulterated venom.
"You think you've won, Ethan?" she whispered, leaning toward him as the deputies stepped forward. "Your sister's debt doesn't disappear because you got a restraining order. The firm owns this house. By Monday afternoon, you and those two pathetic brats will be out on the street."
Ethan stepped closer to her, lowering his voice so only she could hear.
"My sister didn't owe your firm a dime, Vanessa," Ethan said quietly, pulling the black drive from his Henley pocket and holding it where only she could see it. "This drive contains her full audit of your shell company. You didn't come here to collect a debt. You came here to destroy the evidence before she could expose you."
Vanessa froze, every drop of color draining from her face until she looked like a ghost standing on the polished floorboards.
"Take her out," the deputy ordered, taking Vanessa firmly by the arm.
As the deputies escorted Vanessa out into the rainy morning, Ethan turned back toward the stairs.
Seven-year-old Noah stood at the top landing, holding tiny Lily by the hand. Lily clutched her stuffed rabbit tightly against her pale-yellow dress, looking down at her father with wide, cautious hazel eyes.
Ethan walked up the stairs, dropped to one knee, and opened his broad arms wide.
May you like
"Come here," Ethan whispered softly.
Noah and Lily ran down the steps into his chest, wrapping their tiny arms around his neck as the morning sun finally broke through the clouds, illuminating the living room in warm, golden light.
