The Edge of Darkness
1495 Words
Cole walked three blocks before Kane caught up. The rifle hung at his side. His hands were still wet with Juliet's blood. The street was empty. Everyone had run from the gunshots.
“Cole. Stop.”
He didn't stop.
“You can't do this alone.”
Still walking.
Kane grabbed his arm. Spun him around. “Look at me.”
Cole looked. His eyes were hollow.
“Juliet is dead. Your mother is free. The evidence is public. You've won.”
“Won?” Cole's voice cracked. “She's dead because of me. Because I brought her into this.”
“She chose to come. She knew the risks.”
“She trusted me. And I let her die.”
Kane released his arm. “What are you going to do? Kill Cross? Then what? You go to prison. Your mother loses her son. Everything you fought for means nothing.”
Cole looked at the rifle. The black metal was cold.
“Some things are worth going to prison for.”
“Revenge isn't one of them.”
Cole was silent. The wind blew. The clouds were breaking.
“Then what do I do?”
“You survive. You let the system work. You let the evidence do what it was meant to do.”
“The system killed her. The system protected Cross for decades.”
“And now the system will destroy him. Because you gave it the tools.”
Cole looked at the sky. Blue was showing through the gray.
“I need to see my mother.”
“She's at the safe house. With Frankie and Ava. I'll take you.”
They walked back to the sedan. The courthouse was chaos. Police. Ambulances. Reporters.
Kane drove. Cole stared out the window. The city passed in a blur.
The safe house was in Alexandria. A townhouse on a quiet street. Kane parked in the garage. They went inside.
Evelyn was in the living room. She stood when Cole walked in. Hugged him.
“I was so scared.”
“I'm okay, Mom.”
“You're not okay. You're bleeding.”
Cole looked at his hands. Juliet's blood had dried. Cracked.
“It's not mine.”
Evelyn led him to the bathroom. Ran warm water. Washed his hands. The water turned pink. Then clear.
“Juliet Cross was shot,” Cole said. “Outside the courthouse. She died in my arms.”
Evelyn stopped washing. Looked at his face.
“Who did it?”
“Zane. Cross's assassin. He was supposed to be helping us.”
“Where is he now?”
“Gone. He ran.”
Evelyn dried Cole's hands. Held them.
“You can't save everyone, Cole. You did everything you could.”
“It wasn't enough.”
“It never is. But you keep going anyway.”
Cole looked at his mother. The woman who had survived eight years of poison. Who had walked out of a sanatorium and into a war.
“How do you keep going?” he asked.
“Because stopping means they win. And I refuse to let them win.”
Cole hugged her. Held on tight.
“I love you, Mom.”
“I love you too, son.”
They stood in the bathroom. Holding each other. The world outside was chaos. But in that moment, there was peace.
Kane knocked on the door. “We need to talk. The news is covering the shooting. They're saying Juliet was killed by a stray bullet. Cross is controlling the narrative.”
Cole walked to the living room. The TV was on. A reporter stood outside the courthouse.
“...the daughter of Virginia businessman Victor Cross was killed today in what police are calling a tragic accident. No suspects are in custody...”
Cole turned off the TV. “Lies.”
“Of course they're lies. But the public believes what they see. Cross has already spun the story.”
“Then we spin it back.”
“How?”
Cole pulled out his phone. Called Mira Vance.
“Cole. I saw the news. I'm so sorry.”
“I need you to publish the evidence. All of it. Now.”
“I'm working on it. But my editor is afraid. Cross has lawyers. He's threatening to sue.”
“Then publish it yourself. Online. Social media. Everywhere. Let the public decide.”
Mira was quiet for a moment. “That's dangerous. Cross will come after me.”
“I'll protect you.”
“You can't even protect yourself.”
“Then we'll both be in danger. But at least the truth will be out.”
Another pause. “Give me two hours.”
The line went dead.
Cole sat on the couch. His body was exhausted. But his mind was racing.
Frankie walked in. His arm was in a sling. His face was bruised.
“We need to talk,” Frankie said.
“About what?”
“Zane. He's not working for Cross. Not anymore.”
“Then who?”
“Himself. He's gone rogue. He killed Juliet because she was going to testify. Not for Cross. For himself. He's tying up loose ends.”
“How do you know?”
“Because Cross called me. He's scared. Zane is coming after him too. He wants to make a deal.”
Cole stood up. “Cross wants a deal?”
“He wants protection. In exchange, he'll testify against everyone. The board. The judges. The politicians.”
“And you believe him?”
“I believe he's scared. That's the only time people like him tell the truth.”
Cole looked at Kane. “What do you think?”
“I think we use him. Get his testimony. Then we put him in a cell next to the people he betrayed.”
“Agreed.”
Frankie pulled out his phone. “I'll set up the meeting. Neutral ground. Somewhere safe.”
“Where?”
“The airport. Private hangar. He has a plane. He wants to leave the country after we talk.”
“We don't let him leave.”
“That's the plan.”
Cole walked to the window. The street was quiet. The sun was setting.
“Tonight,” he said. “We end this.”
---
The airport was dark. The private hangar was lit from inside. Cross's plane sat on the tarmac. Engines cold.
Cole drove the sedan to the gate. A guard waved them through. Kane had called ahead.
They parked inside the hangar. Cross was waiting. Two bodyguards flanked him.
“Mr. Mathers. Thank you for coming.”
“I didn't come for you. I came for the truth.”
Cross nodded. “The truth is, I'm a dead man if I stay in this country. Zane has a list. Everyone who ever crossed him. I'm at the top.”
“Why should I protect you?”
“Because I can give you the names of everyone who helped him. Everyone who paid him. Everyone who looked the other way.”
“And in return?”
“A plane. A new identity. A chance to live.”
Cole looked at Kane. Kane nodded.
“Start talking,” Cole said.
Cross talked. For an hour. Names. Dates. Places. Crimes. He gave them everything. The board members. The judges. The police chiefs. The politicians.
Kane recorded every word.
When Cross finished, he looked at Cole. “Now let me go.”
Cole stepped aside. Cross walked toward the plane.
Then the hangar doors exploded.
Fire. Smoke. Debris.
Cole hit the floor. Kane dropped beside him.
Gunfire erupted. Cross's bodyguards fell. Cross ran toward the plane.
A figure walked through the smoke. Zane. Rifle in his hands.
He fired at the plane. The fuel tank exploded.
Cross was thrown back. His body hit the concrete. Didn't move.
Zane walked to Cole. Stood over him.
“You should have stayed out of this.”
Cole raised his pistol. Fired.
Zane stumbled. Dropped his rifle. Clutched his chest.
He fell to his knees. Looked at Cole.
“Your father... sent me... to kill you...”
“My father is dead.”
“Not... your real father...”
Zane collapsed. His eyes stayed open.
Cole stood. Walked to Cross's body. The man was dead. Burned beyond recognition.
Kane pulled him away. “We need to leave. The fire will bring police.”
They ran to the sedan. Drove out of the hangar. The fire raged behind them.
Cole looked at the flames. Two more bodies. Two more deaths.
“Cross is dead,” Cole said.
“Zane too.”
“It's over.”
Kane shook his head. “It's never over. There's always someone else. Another board member. Another assassin. Another corruption.”
“Then we keep fighting.”
Kane drove toward the safe house.
Behind them, the airport burned.
Ahead, an uncertain future.
But for the first time in weeks, Cole allowed himself to breathe.
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