Chapter 13
1128 Words
LUCY POV
Talia clutched her bleeding arm, and Cullen’s face twitched with uncertainty as his gun was still pressed to Dad’s head.
My legs wobbled, pain blurring through my thoughts, but Nana’s betrayal burned hotter.
“Put down your gun, Cullen,” Nana said, her voice vibrating, “Or the next bullet is for you.”
Cullen remained still. "You are bluffing, Nana. We had a deal.”
My head hurts more. A deal?
My stepmother, a woman who raised me from childhood, showered me with so much love and care that it was also deeper than I ever thought. I have lived my entire life thinking that she was the best mother on earth, not knowing that she had her own plans.
The thought of what she was to me, hurt her more than anything I could ever imagine.
I grabbed Will’s hand, trying to keep myself steady. “Nana, why?” I whispered, my voice breaking as hot tears bubbled under my eyelid.
She remained, her eyes fixed on Cullen, avoiding me. “Shut up, Lucy. This is bigger than you,” she snapped.
Will's gaze shifted slightly to Nana in a calculated manner, but his gun remained fixed on Cullen. “What’s your play, Nana?” he asked in a low but audible voice. “This does not make you a saint."
She smirked, chilling and cruel. “Andrea, you are correct. I’ve been pulling strings longer than you’ve been plotting revenge.”
Dad’s eyes met mine, filled with shame. “Lucy, I didn’t know… not at first,” he whispered. Cullen silenced him by pressing the rifle harder against his head.
“Enough!” Nic snapped, stepping forward as papers scattered at his feet. “Nana, you can not be unfaithful to us now. The Jones Group is ours!”
Nana laughed, cold and bitter. “Yours? You think I’d let you Dipsons take everything? I have been playing all of you.” She swung her gun toward Nic, who froze. “Those documents are fakes. I swapped them months ago. I have the real ones, and they will bury your family.”
My heart stopped. She has outsmarted everyone? Will glanced at him; his face was unreadable. Nic’s mouth opened, then closed, his arrogance crumbling. Cullen's eyes narrowed. As his gun twitched towards Nana
“You b***h,” he hissed. “You’ll pay for this.”
Nana murmured, “Try me.” She steadied her finger on the trigger.
Dad was still on his knees as Bella crawled toward him and sobbed.
Raymond remained still with his gun half-raised, torn between survival and allegiance. It seems he was scared that Will would kill him or something. He was ready to pull the trigger at any time.
I don't know what all this was all about, but all I wanted was to be safe from whatever plans they had plotted against me. All I felt was fire burning in my name.
They want me dead, even my own people; they don't want me to be happy.
I turned towards Will, who was still by my side, and muttered, "Please do something." My voice cracked.
With a whirlwind of resolve and guilt, his eyes met mine. Then he murmured, "I will," and then he raised his voice louder. “Nana, let Hillary go, if you want the Dipsons? I’ll help you take them down.”
Nana’s brow arched, intrigued. “You’d betray your own revenge, Andrea? For her?” She nodded slightly, and she gave me a sarcastic smile.
Will's clenched hand tightened. "Yes, I would burn it all for her." His words struck me like a bullet, hurting my heart. Was it his intention? Or was this another lie? I have believed in him since I was a child, even though I love him secretly, but it is not compared to the trust I have in him.
But now, after what he said to me, I find it bad to trust him again. Fear crawled in my chest. Before I could process what was going on, a loud crash echoed from the warehouse’s entrance, and everyone froze.
My breath caught, relief and confusion colliding as Grey stumbled in, his suit torn, blood streaking his face. “Lucy!” he called, in a raspy voice.
His angry gaze was not on me but on Nana. It was filled with rage. “You set me up,” he spat. “You and Dad planned this whole thing to frame me!”
"Buddy, what on earth are you talking about?” Cullen's gun wavered as his head snapped to face Grey.
Grey chuckled, “You used me to get to the Jones Group, but Nana played you both. She’s been skimming millions from Dipson Markets for years, Dipson Markets and transferring it to her own accounts.”
Nana’s smile faltered as her gun dipped slightly. “Lies,” she snarled, but her voice was tremulous.
My mind reeled. Grey is alive, and he is accusing Nana? Was he telling the truth? Or was this another one of Dipson's tricks? With every minute that passed, my wound screamed. I held Will's arm firmly. "Is he serious?” I whispered.
Will's gaze flitted between Grey and Nana without a response. Raymond's loyalty was wearing away as he turned his gun, now pointing directly towards Nana.
Bella wailed softly as she held on to Dad, who looked as if he would pass out in no time.
Cullen pulled Father up to his feet and yelled, "Enough of this, Nana, you want to play games? I’ll end them.”
He pointed his gun directly at her, but Will moved quickly and fired a shot that grazed Cullen’s arm. He cursed and dropped Dad slowly, who hit the ground hard.
Chaos erupted. Nic lunged for Nana, tackling her. She pulled the trigger, and the bullet ricocheted off the ceiling. Will shoved me behind a container while protecting me with his body. “Stay down!” he snarled, firing again.
My eyes caught Grey grabbing Bella and pulling her towards the doorway. "We are leaving!" he yelled, his eyes still fixed on me, displaying something I could not read…probably sorrow or guilt.
Nana broke free from Nic, her gun raised again. “No one should step an ich!" she yelled, tears bubbling under her eyelids, her calm exterior giving way to frenzied despair.
A truck rushed inside the warehouse. Will immediately pulled me tighter, his breath ragged.
Someone with a gun came out of the truck's cab. It was Cullen's wife, Bella's mother, her face contorted in
rage. She growled at her and said, "You thought you coul
d ruin my family, Nana?" She growled, aiming her gun at her. "You are finished."
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