Chapter Fifteen: Bloodlines and Battlelines (Thomas)

                                        

                                              

The call with the police had just ended. My throat was dry, my palms damp with sweat despite the icy calm of my office. I sat still for a moment, letting the silence settle like dust after a storm.
Tomorrow, we dismantle everything. My father's empire. Laura's schemes. The web of lies and corruption they've spun for years. The FBI's Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch (CCRSB) is already involved, but we need to move quickly. The evidence we've gathered is substantial, but we can't afford any slip-ups.
I exhaled slowly, feeling the weight of the upcoming mission. My anger flared again, directed at my father, at myself, at Laura. I had been complicit, naive, and blind to the truth. Now, I was determined to dismantle the empire my father had built on lies and deceit.
And Laura? She didn't just hurt my wife. She humiliated her. 
And Me, I let her. With every smirk, every veiled jab, every text I answered when I should have ignored. And worst of all—I thought putting her on speaker last night would prove something. That I was being honest. That October would see I wasn't hiding anymore.
But it backfired. October saw everything. She saw how pathetic I'd become. How I let a woman like Laura stroke my ego while I let my wife wither in the shadows. All for what? Daddy's approval? A fucking pat on the head? I closed my eyes and pressed my fists to them, my teeth gritted so tight my jaw ached.
October was right. I wasn't a man. I was a puppet. A weak, spineless coward in a suit. And now the only thing left to do is destroy the hand that held the strings.
I stood up, pacing the room, my mind racing through the details. Tomorrow is the day we take them down, even myself—if that's what it takes. Because if everything burns down tomorrow and I'm standing in the ashes alone, so be it. At least I'll know I did something right in the end.
And if October never forgives me? I'll still do it. Because I'd rather be the ruin of this legacy than the son who upheld it. The lawyer's words echoed in my head. "Do not, under any circumstance, tip them off. If your father or Laura catch wind, they'll vanish, and we lose everything."
I was still staring at the case files when I heard the click of heels. Too familiar. Too late to pretend I wasn't here.
Laura.
She entered like always, like she owned the air in the room. Bright lipstick, smooth voice. Poison wrapped in perfume.
"Hey, stranger," she said with a mock pout. "You've been avoiding me."
"No," I said flatly. "Just working."
"Come grab coffee with me?" Her hand grazed my desk like it belonged there.
I tapped my mug. "I have one here."
Her brows furrowed. "You okay? You've been off all week."
I forced a smile. God, it felt like glue cracking on my face. "Just sick. Like I said last night."
She leaned forward, pouting again. "Still giving you hell, huh? Your wife, I mean."
There it was. The casual jab. The way she said "your wife" like it was a disease. I used to brush it off. Sometimes laugh. God, I was such a coward.
I stood up abruptly. "Excuse me. I need the bathroom."
I didn't wait for a reply. Just walked. Fast. My stomach twisted with every step. I could hear her heels behind me, following. Why was she following? And then I turned the corner—and saw him.
Joseph. My father-in-law. October's dad. Dressed in jeans and a worn leather jacket, but carrying himself like a man about to declare war. His jaw was locked, eyes burning.