Chapter 24 - Brooke’s Downfall
I stepped closer, close enough for Brooke to see the utter absence of mercy in my eyes. Julian stood two paces behind me, his weapon lowered but ready, giving me the floor.
"You called him an animal," I said softly. Every syllable felt like a blade sliding home. "You watched him starve. You let Dominic lock him in a dark room while you paraded through my home wearing my jewelry, sleeping in my bed, dreaming of becoming the lady of the Sterling estate."
"I was stupid! I'm sorry!" Brooke wept, dropping to her knees in the wet dirt, clutching at the hem of my trench coat. "Take the money! Take everything! Just let me go to the airport! I have a mother... I have a family..."
"So did I," I whispered, pulling my coat away from her filthy grasp. "And you tried to destroy it."
Sirens wailed in the near distance. Red and blue lights flashed through the trees as state police cruisers and tactical units swarmed down the private road, sealing off every exit.
Detectives jumped from the lead cruiser, their badges gleaming under the rain. "Step away from the suspect!"
I stepped back, adjusting Leo in my arms. Brooke looked up at the approaching officers with wide, pleading eyes, but there was no salvation waiting for her. Two female officers pinned her arms behind her back, clicking heavy steel handcuffs around her slender wrists.
"Brooke Vance, you are under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder, child abuse and endangerment, grand larceny, and corporate espionage," the lead detective announced cold and flat.
"Clara! Tell them! Tell them I helped you!" Brooke shrieked as they dragged her through the mud toward the police cruiser. Her voice cracked into ugly, hysterical wails that faded into the rain.
I turned my back on her. She was nothing now. Just garbage being swept away by the storm.
May you like
Leo pressed his forehead against my cheek. His tiny hand reached out, touching the rain dripping from my eyelashes. "Mommy... are the bad people gone?"
I kissed his little palm, my heart swelling with a warmth so profound it drove away the chill of the storm. "Yes, my brave boy. They will never touch you again."
