Chapter 16 - The Ultimate BetrayalThorne motioned to the towering henchman holding the gun to Maya’s head. The henchman stepped forward, keeping the weapon trained on the little girl while kicking the briefcase open to inspect the journals inside.
"It's all here, Judge," the henchman grunted, flipping through Elena's handwritten pages.
Thorne smiled broadly, his eyes gleaming with malicious triumph. "Wonderful. Now, dispose of them."
"You promised!" Nathan roared, taking a desperate step forward.
Before Nathan could lunge, the henchman raised his gun toward Nathan's chest. But suddenly, a sharp crack echoed across the cliffs.
A bullet clipped the henchman’s shoulder, sending his gun flying into the air. Liam had taken the shot from the western ridge.
"Now, Liam!" Nathan yelled, sprinting forward with explosive speed.
The henchman lunged for Maya, but Nathan slammed into him like a freight train, sending both of them tumbling across the gravel toward the very edge of the precipice, mere inches from the crashing waves below.
Judge Thorne panicked, pulling a small silver pistol from his coat pocket and leveling it straight at Nathan, who was currently wrestling the henchman on the ground.
"Die, hero," Thorne hissed, pulling the trigger.
Click.
The gun jammed. Thorne cursed furiously, trying to clear the chamber.
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Suddenly, a pair of small arms wrapped around Thorne’s leg. Eight-year-old Maya, having managed to slip her bonds using the sharp edge of a jagged rock, had crawled forward and sunk her teeth deep into Thorne’s ankle.
"Get off me, you little brat!" Thorne shrieked, kicking backward.
