Chapter 9
459words
Ethan Reynolds became a fugitive from financial ruin, dodging creditors and legal summons.
I received Walter's updates on his deterioration with clinical detachment.
Until one evening, as I exited the office building after working late.
James Sullivan maintained his usual protective distance behind me.
I had nearly reached my vehicle when a shadow erupted from the landscaping.
Ethan Reynolds!
His eyes were wild, face contorted with hatred.
He brandished a butcher knife, slashing toward me without hesitation!
"If I'm ruined, you won't survive either!!"
Everything unfolded in fractions of seconds.
"Miss, behind you!"
James reacted with trained reflexes, simultaneously pushing me aside and intercepting the attack.
His arm rose to block the descending blade.
Steel sliced through expensive wool and into flesh, blood immediately saturating the fabric.
Enraged by his failed attempt, Ethan slashed wildly again.
Despite his injury, James seized Ethan's wrist, the two men locked in violent struggle.
"Security! Call police!"
James commanded the frozen security guard as a second wound opened across his forearm.
The sight of James's blood streaming down his arm made my heart seize momentarily.
"The fire extinguisher! Now!" I commanded the paralyzed security guard, fury surging through me.
The guard snapped to attention, rushing to retrieve the emergency equipment.
I seized the canister, aimed directly at Ethan's face, and depressed the lever with decisive force.
"James, shield your eyes!"
A dense cloud of chemical powder exploded outward, engulfing Ethan's head and upper body.
"My eyes!" He released a guttural scream, the knife clattering to the pavement.
Ethan collapsed, hands clawing at his burning eyes, body convulsing with violent coughs.
James immediately secured the weapon and positioned himself protectively beside me.
Blood from his wounds dripped steadily, forming an alarming crimson puddle at our feet.
Police sirens wailed in the distance, growing louder.
Officers emerged from patrol cars, moving to secure the perimeter.
Ethan, face coated with chemical powder and vision compromised, suddenly lurched to his feet and stumbled blindly toward the busy street.
A sickening thud.
The horrific impact of metal against flesh.
Time suspended in that terrible moment.
Ethan's body, struck by a delivery truck unable to stop, was launched skyward before crashing onto unforgiving asphalt.
Blood pooled beneath his broken form, expanding across the concrete.
I remained frozen, suddenly unsteady, as James—despite his injuries—supported me with a firm grip.
Staring at the motionless figure in the street, I felt nothing but a hollow emptiness.
He had once been the center of my world, the recipient of my complete devotion.
He had also been my tormentor, the architect of my suffering and humiliation.
Now, all love and hatred, all machinations and vengeance, concluded in this single, brutal moment.
It was finished.
