Chapter 4: The Man Who Came Back With a Gun
“Everybody stay where you are!””
Curtis's voice echoed through the storage facility.
He stood beside his black pickup truck, holding a handgun at his side. His brown jacket was unzipped, his breathing uneven, and his eyes darted between Wolf, Preacher, and the open storage unit.
Wolf slowly moved in front of Noah.
“Put the gun down, Curtis.””
Curtis laughed nervously.
“You really think you can tell me what to do?””
“I think you're making the worst decision of your life.””
Curtis raised the weapon.
“Move away from that cabinet.””
Wolf didn't move.
Behind him, Noah clutched the back of his leather vest.
“Please don't let him take Mom,” the boy whispered.
Wolf glanced down.
“Stay behind me, son.””
Curtis pointed the gun toward the storage unit.
“I said move!””
Preacher stepped forward.
“Michael wouldn't recognize the man you've become.””
Curtis's face twisted.
“Don't you dare mention Michael!””
“He trusted you.””
“He was an idiot!””
The words hung in the air.
Preacher looked as though Curtis had struck him.
“Your brother gave you everything,” he said.
“He gave you a job. A home. A family that treated you like their own.””
Curtis shook his head.
“He always thought he was better than me.””
Wolf's voice was cold.
“So you stole from him?””
Curtis laughed.
“He had money. He had a business. He had a wife who loved him and children who worshipped him. And I was supposed to stand there smiling while he played the hero?””
“You were supposed to be his brother.””
“I was tired of being second!””
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then Sarah called from inside the cabinet.
“Curtis, please. There are children here.””
His expression changed.
“Shut up!””
Noah began trembling.
“Don't talk to my mom!””
Curtis turned toward the boy.
“Your mother should have stayed gone.””
Wolf took one step forward.
“Don't you look at that child again.””
Curtis raised the gun higher.
“Back up!””
Wolf stopped.
Ryder, standing near the entrance, quietly shifted his position.
His hand was close to his phone.
The police were coming, but they weren't there yet.
Curtis looked at the cabinet.
“You were supposed to disappear, Sarah.””
Sarah's voice shook.
“You told me Michael was dead because of an accident.””
“It was an accident.””
“You left him on the side of the road!””
Curtis's jaw tightened.
Wolf looked sharply at him.
“What did she just say?””
Curtis ignored him.
Sarah continued.
“You hit his motorcycle. You drove away. You left him bleeding in the rain.””
Curtis's grip tightened around the gun.
“He was going to ruin everything!””
Noah buried his face against Wolf's vest.
Preacher closed his eyes.
“Dear God.””
Curtis looked around as though searching for an escape.
Then he pointed at the jacket.
“Give me that.””
Wolf glanced down at Michael's old leather jacket.
“No.””
“It's mine!””
“Funny. Michael's daughter seemed to think otherwise.””
“There's something inside it.””
“I know.””
Curtis's face went pale.
He had just confirmed what they needed to know.
Wolf continued.
“What's in the jacket, Curtis?””
“Nothing.””
“Then why are you willing to point a gun at a room full of people to get it?””
Curtis took another step forward.
“Give it to me, and I'll let everyone walk away.””
Wolf shook his head.
“You don't get to make deals anymore.””
The distant sound of sirens began to rise.
Curtis heard them.
His eyes widened.
“Who called the police?””
Ryder lifted his phone.
“I did.””
Curtis swung the gun toward him.
“Put it down!””
Ryder raised both hands.
“Easy.””
Then a small voice came from the cabinet.
“Uncle Curtis?””
Everyone turned.
Sarah was speaking to him.
“You can still stop this.””
Curtis's face tightened.
“You don't understand.””
“I understand exactly what happened to Michael.””
“No, you don't!””
“I was in the car.””
Curtis froze.
Wolf stared at the cabinet.
Sarah continued.
“I saw you turn the steering wheel.””
Curtis's mouth fell open.
“I was trying to avoid him!””
“You were trying to hit him.””
A heavy silence followed.
Then Sarah said something that made Wolf's blood run cold.
“And Michael knew you were coming. He told me to take the children and leave.””
Curtis suddenly lunged forward.
“LIAR!””
The gun went off.
The bullet struck the metal wall above Wolf's shoulder.
Noah screamed.
Wolf threw himself over the boy as Ryder rushed forward.
Preacher grabbed Curtis's gun arm.
The weapon clattered across the concrete.
Curtis fought violently, swinging his elbow into Preacher's face.
Ryder tackled him from the side.
All three men crashed into a stack of cardboard boxes.
Wolf kept Noah behind him.
“Stay down!””
The boy covered his ears.
Outside, several police vehicles screeched to a stop.
Officers rushed through the entrance with weapons drawn.
“POLICE! HANDS WHERE WE CAN SEE THEM!””
Curtis was pinned to the floor.
Ryder stepped away with both hands raised.
Preacher wiped blood from his forehead.
Wolf slowly stood.
“There's a woman locked inside that cabinet. We need medical assistance.””
Two officers approached.
One checked Curtis for weapons while another moved toward the cabinet.
“Ma'am, can you hear me?””
“Yes,” Sarah whispered.
“Stay calm. We're getting you out.””
An officer used a tool to force the lock.
The cabinet door opened.
And Sarah Bennett stepped into the light.
She was thinner than in the photograph.
Her dark hair had turned gray around the temples, and there were bruises along her wrists.
But she was alive.
Noah ran toward her.
“Mom!””
Sarah dropped to her knees and wrapped both arms around him.
“My baby.””
Noah buried his face against her neck.
“I thought you died.””
Sarah kissed his forehead.
“I'm here. I'm here.””
Wolf looked away.
He had seen men cry over lost brothers, lost wives, and lost children.
But watching a nine-year-old boy cling to his mother after believing she was gone was something else entirely.
An officer approached Sarah.
“Ma'am, we need to ask you some questions.””
Sarah nodded.
Then she looked toward Wolf.
“Where's Ava?””
Wolf crouched beside her.
“She's safe. She's waiting for Noah.””
Sarah's lips trembled.
“Please take me to her.””
Wolf nodded.
“We will.””
But before anyone could move, one of the officers called from the storage unit entrance.
“Detective! You need to see this!””
A man in a dark suit stepped inside.
He had arrived with the second police vehicle.
He looked at the jacket in Wolf's hands.
Then at Sarah.
“Sarah Bennett?””
She nodded.
The detective held up a photograph.
It showed Michael standing beside a police cruiser.
“Your husband contacted our department three months ago. He reported financial fraud and threatened to provide evidence against a relative.””
Sarah looked at the picture.
Then she whispered:
“Michael wasn't just investigating Curtis.””
The detective lowered the photograph.
“What else was he investigating?””
May you like
Sarah stared at the black leather jacket.
“He found out someone else was helping him.””
