Chapter 13 - Blood and Pearl
Nora scrambled to her feet, scooping up the dropped pistol. She spun around to see who had taken the shot.
Standing fifty yards away beside a white limousine parked near the harbor entrance was Evelyn. Her mother was soaked to the skin, her elegant bob plastered against her skull, holding a small, silver-plated pearl-handled revolver in both hands. Smoke drifted from the snub-nosed barrel.
""Get away from my daughter,"" Evelyn said, her voice carrying across the pier with absolute, chilling authority.
Marcus Vance whipped around, raising his rifle toward Evelyn, but the limousine doors flew open. Four heavily armed men in dark business suits stepped out, laying down a disciplined, suppressive barrage of automatic fire that instantly pinned Marcus behind his wrecked vehicle.
It wasn't the police. It was the private security detail of the Vanderbilt Family Trust.
Evelyn walked forward steadily, her high heels clicking rhythmically against the wet pavement despite the gunfire echoing around her. She didn't flinch as rounds sparked off the containers nearby. She looked like a queen surveying the slaughter of common thieves.
""You thought you could double-cross me, Marcus?"" Evelyn called out over the gunfire. ""You thought my family survived three generations in this city by trusting dogs like you?""
Nora watched in stunned horror. Her mother had never been a victim of the cartel. She was a commanding partner.
Chloe was on the ground, clutching her bleeding shoulder, groaning in agony. Nora kept the pistol trained on her, though her eyes were locked onto her mother's approach.
""Mom... what is this?"" Nora demanded, her voice shaking with disgust.
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Evelyn stopped three paces away, lowering her silver revolver. She looked down at Julian’s bloody trail leading into the drain, then met Nora's eyes with terrifying warmth.
""This is family business, darling,"" Evelyn said softly. ""Now, give me the drive, and let’s go home to the girls.""
