Chapter 16 - The Flood Tunnel
Officers shouted over the roar.
Ethan ran down the service stairs despite Maya yelling after him.
The lower passage already had water at knee height.
Detective Chen clung to a railing twenty yards ahead.
"Back!" she shouted. "The gate is fully open!"
Then Ethan saw Grant on the opposite catwalk.
He was trying to reach a maintenance ladder leading to the riverbank.
Travis was nowhere in sight.
"Grant!"
His brother turned.
For one second they were boys again, standing across the creek behind their childhood house, daring each other to jump.
Then Grant raised a gun.
"Don't."
Ethan stopped.
"Claire begged you to stop stealing."
"Claire threatened to send me to prison."
"So you killed her."
Grant's jaw twitched.
"I told Travis to scare her. He changed the car. I didn't ask questions."
The confession was ugly and cowardly.
"And Nora?"
"Nora wanted money and status. She thought she could control you after I softened you up."
"You poisoned me."
"I designed the plan. She poured the cups."
Water surged higher.
Chen's body camera blinked red.
Recording.
Grant noticed it too late.
He fired.
The shot hit metal.
An officer tackled Ethan behind a concrete support.
Grant turned toward the ladder.
A hand shot from below and grabbed his ankle.
Travis.
He had been hiding beneath the catwalk.
"You left me!" Travis screamed.
Grant kicked at him.
The two men crashed against the railing.
It gave way.
They fell into waist-deep water on the lower platform.
Officers rushed them before either could stand.
Minutes later, both were in cuffs.
As Grant was dragged past Ethan, he laughed through a split lip.
"You think this fixes your family?"
Ethan looked him in the eye.
"No."
He thought of Lily.
"But it stops you from breaking it again."
Outside, Maya wrapped a blanket around Ethan's shoulders.
Chen approached holding her phone.
"We got the confession. We also found something on Travis's phone."
She showed Ethan a message sent that afternoon.
It was from Nora.
If Grant gets caught, tell them the poisoning was his idea. I want immunity.
Ethan stared at it.
May you like
Nora was already trying to survive the people she had helped destroy.
And tomorrow, she wanted to talk.
