Chapter 12 - STORAGE UNIT 417
Owen ran first.
Two detectives chased him down the alley while Damian, Marcus, and Elena followed police into the storage building.
Vanessa was already inside Unit 417.
Shelves held fake IDs, burner phones, financial statements, and photographs of other men.
Vanessa stood behind a folding table with a small black token in her hand.
“Stay back.”
Damian stopped ten feet away.
“It’s over.”
“No,” Vanessa said. “It’s finally honest.”
Elena stared at her. “Honest? You framed me.”
Vanessa’s eyes flashed. “You had what I couldn’t buy.”
“What?”
“He trusted you.” She pointed at Damian. “You walked into a room in a cheap uniform and he believed you. I spent years becoming the woman men like him respect, and he still looked at your kid like she was the only real thing in the house.”
Damian said quietly, “That was never Elena’s crime.”
Vanessa laughed. “No. It was yours.”
She pressed the token.
Marcus lunged.
A detective grabbed her wrist, but the device beeped once.
Vanessa smiled.
“Too late.”
Police cuffed her as Marcus snatched the token and checked his phone.
His face changed.
“The transfer was released.”
Damian looked at the countdown.
May you like
Nine minutes remained before the funds cleared the first bank.
And the money was already moving.
