Chapter 14 - The Choice
Grant raised both hands.
“Renata.”
“Do not come closer.”
Ruiz aimed her weapon.
“Drop the detonator.”
Renata laughed.
“You cannot shoot before my thumb releases.”
She had wired the trigger as a dead-man switch.
If she released pressure, the explosives would ignite.
Victor shouted from behind the steel cage.
“Do it.”
“Burn everything.”
Renata turned toward him.
“You planned to leave me inside the building.”
“You were always replaceable.”
Something changed in her expression.
The truth wounded her more deeply than any accusation.
For years, Renata had believed Victor saw her as a partner.
Perhaps even as a daughter.
Now she understood that he had viewed her as another instrument.
Grant spoke carefully.
“He will sacrifice you.”
“He already has.”
“Be quiet.”
“You can still stop this.”
“And spend my life in prison?”
“You tortured my child.”
“You helped murder Claire.”
“You kidnapped people.”
“There is no life where you walk away.”
Renata’s eyes filled with rage.
“Then why should anyone else?”
The building radio crackled.
Fire crews had discovered explosives throughout Callahan headquarters.
Employees were clear.
But three firefighters remained inside the archive floor.
The detonator in Renata’s hand could kill them.
Lily stepped around Grant.
He reached for her.
She pulled away.
“Renata.”
The woman stared at her.
Lily’s voice trembled.
“You said being scared makes people obey.”
Renata smiled faintly.
“It does.”
“I was scared of you.”
“I know.”
“But I talked anyway.”
Renata’s smile disappeared.
Lily took another step.
“You are scared now.”
“Lily, come back,” Grant said.
She continued.
“And Victor thinks you will obey.”
Renata looked toward the cage.
Victor gripped the bars.
“Press it.”
Lily held out the silver music box.
“My mommy knew you would lie.”
Renata’s eyes moved toward it.
“She knew Victor would lie too.”
“What are you talking about?”
Lily opened the lid.
Beneath the rotating dancer was a photograph.
It showed Renata as a young girl beside Victor Cole.
Victor’s arm rested around her shoulders.
On the back, Claire had written one sentence.
RENATA COLE IS NOT VICTOR’S DAUGHTER — SHE IS HIS FIRST VICTIM.
Renata stared at the photograph.
“Where did she get that?”
Grant looked at Victor.
“What does it mean?”
Victor remained silent.
Ruiz spoke.
“We investigated sealed adoption records.”
“Renata’s mother worked for Victor when she was seventeen.”
“She disappeared after filing an assault complaint.”
Renata’s face went blank.
“No.”
“Victor took custody of you through a private arrangement.”
“He told you he saved you.”
“He told me my mother abandoned me.”
Victor struck the cage.
“Do not listen to them.”
Ruiz continued.
“Your mother did not abandon you.”
“She spent fifteen years trying to locate you.”
“Victor threatened her.”
Renata’s thumb trembled against the detonator.
“Where is she?”
“Alive.”
Victor shouted.
“They are lying.”
Grant looked at Renata.
“Claire found her.”
“That is why Claire kept the photograph.”
“She was trying to tell you.”
Renata’s breathing became uneven.
“She hated me.”
“She knew what I was doing.”
“She knew what Victor had made you become.”
Victor’s face twisted.
“You ungrateful little fool.”
“You were nothing before me.”
“I gave you a name.”
“I gave you power.”
“I made you useful.”
Renata turned slowly.
Victor had finally said the truth aloud.
Not daughter.
Not partner.
Useful.
The detonator shook in her hand.
Ruiz lowered her weapon slightly.
“Renata, lock the trigger.”
“There is a safety switch on the side.”
“Move it upward.”
Victor screamed at her to press it.
Lily remained still.
“You do not have to obey him.”
Renata looked at the child she had tormented.
Tears moved down her face.
For one terrible second, I thought she would kill everyone anyway.
Then she slid the safety upward.
The trigger locked.
Ruiz crossed the distance and seized the device.
Two officers placed Renata in handcuffs.
She did not resist.
Victor continued shouting from the cage.
He promised to destroy everyone.
Grant stood before him.
“You already destroyed yourself.”
Fire crews disarmed the explosives.
The three trapped firefighters escaped safely.
The metal container inside the vault opened only after Lily placed the star into Claire’s key.
Inside were original financial records, signed payment authorizations, and an external drive containing years of communications.
Victor had ordered Claire’s murder.
Elaine had approved the money.
Mercer had altered the car.
Thomas had hidden the transfers.
Renata had helped force Claire into the vehicle.
The evidence was complete.
But one file shocked Grant more than all the others.
It was a revised will.
Claire had placed her shares into a trust that Grant did not control.
The sole trustee was Margaret Haines.
And the trust contained a condition.
If Claire died under suspicious circumstances, Grant would be temporarily removed from control of Lily’s shares until he proved he could place his daughter above the company.
The upcoming board vote was no longer only about Victor’s conspiracy.
Grant had to face the truth Claire had left behind.
May you like
She had loved him.
But she had not trusted him to choose Lily.
