Chapter 17 - ROOM 3B
Now police surrounded the block.
“So do I,” Daniel said.
“Then don’t do it.”
“He asked for me. If he sees officers first, he runs.”
Daniel entered alone.
Evan stood near the broken window.
He looked exhausted.
On the table sat a laptop and a handgun.
Daniel stopped.
“Leave the gun.”
Evan smiled faintly. “Still giving orders.”
“You wanted to talk.”
“I wanted you to understand.”
“There is nothing you can say that makes this understandable.”
Evan’s face tightened. “You had everything. The company. The reputation. The family.”
“You could have built your own life.”
“I built yours.”
“No. We built something together. Then you decided that wasn’t enough.”
Evan looked toward the laptop. “That drive can bury half your board. It can destroy Hart Systems.”
“Then destroy it.”
Evan blinked.
Daniel stepped closer. “You still think the company is the thing I’m trying to save.”
“What else do you have?”
“My daughter.”
Daniel continued, “You can leak every file. Burn every server. Take every dollar. None of it matters more than Lily walking into a room without being afraid.”
Evan’s hand moved toward the gun.
Police shouted from the hallway.
Evan grabbed it.
Daniel froze.
“Don’t.”
Evan lifted the weapon—not toward Daniel, but toward the laptop.
One shot shattered the screen.
Officers rushed in.
Evan turned.
Ramirez tackled his arm as another officer drove him to the floor.
The gun skidded away.
Daniel stood against the wall, breathing hard.
Evan was handcuffed.
As officers dragged him up, he looked at Daniel and smiled.
May you like
“You think that was the last copy?”
Then he whispered, “Ask your wife what she mailed yesterday.”
