CHAPTER 7 — “The Bullet Meant for a Child”
"No!"
Nathan's scream echoed through the hangar.
The hidden mercenary pulled the trigger.
BANG!
Time seemed to stop.
Oliver stood frozen in his grandfather's arms.
Emily closed her eyes, certain she was about to lose her son.
But the bullet never reached him.
Richard Carter threw himself in front of Oliver.
The shot struck him in the shoulder.
He staggered backward but refused to let the boy fall.
"Grandpa!" Oliver cried.
Nathan exploded into action.
He tackled the gunman before a second shot could be fired. The pistol skidded across the concrete floor as the two men crashed into a stack of metal crates.
The mercenary pulled a knife.
Nathan caught his wrist just inches from his throat.
"You destroyed my family!" Nathan roared.
The man sneered.
"You still don't know the truth."
Before Nathan could force an answer, federal agents stormed into the hangar from every entrance.
"Federal agents! Drop your weapons!"
Victor Hale tried to run toward a side door.
He made it only ten steps.
An elderly mechanic stepped out from behind an old aircraft and swung a heavy steel wrench into Victor's knee.
Victor collapsed with a scream.
"You don't remember me," the mechanic said quietly.
"But I remember my son."
Nathan looked closer.
It was Samuel Brooks—the chief engineer Victor had framed for industrial sabotage eight years earlier.
Because of Victor's lies, Samuel's son had died in prison before proving his innocence.
Victor crawled desperately toward the exit.
"Help me!"
No one moved.
Not one of his remaining men.
The agents handcuffed him while cameras from arriving news crews captured every second.
Victor looked up at Nathan with hatred burning in his eyes.
"You think you've won?"
Nathan stared back.
"It's over."
Victor laughed.
"No... because there's one secret Richard never told you."
Nathan frowned.
Victor whispered one sentence before agents pulled him away.
"Oliver isn't the only heir."
The hangar fell silent once again.
Richard's face suddenly lost all color.
Nathan noticed.
May you like
His father wasn't surprised.
He already knew.
