Chapter 8 - The Shadow at the Door
A sharp sound echoed from the bottom of the lighthouse.
CLANG.
The heavy iron door at the base of the tower slammed shut. Footsteps—slow, deliberate, and loud—began to echo up the spiral staircase.
Julian immediately stepped in front of Clara and Evelyn, reaching for a heavy iron poker resting next to the wood stove.
"He tracked us," Julian said grimly. "The pickup's oil leak. We left a trail straight from the main road."
From the stairwell below, a familiar, smooth voice floated up, distorted by the stone echo of the tower.
"Evelyn... I must admit, I am truly impressed," Richard’s voice called out. "Twelve years in the cold, hiding like a rat in the rocks, and you still managed to ruin a three-million-dollar wedding."
Clara walked to the edge of the stair railing, looking down into the gloom. Richard was climbing the stairs slowly, dressed in his pristine tuxedo, carrying a sleek black suppressed pistol in his right hand. Behind him were two heavy-set men in dark suits.
"It's over, Richard!" Clara screamed down at him. "We know everything! The police will be here!"
Richard laughed—a dry, chilling sound. "The police? Clara, my dear, who do you think told me where your little blue truck was heading? County Sheriff Miller has been on my payroll since before you were in middle school."
Richard reached the top landing, stepping into the keeper's room with calm, terrifying grace. His security guards blocked the stairwell behind him, cutting off any escape.
"You should have stayed dead, Evelyn," Richard said, pointing the weapon casually at Evelyn’s chest. "You were much more valuable to me as a memory."
"You won't get away with this, Richard," Julian said, stepping into Richard's line of fire. "There are two hundred guests at that estate. The press knows Clara went missing. You can't just kill four people in a lighthouse and walk away."
May you like
Richard smiled coldly. "Four people? Oh, Julian, you lack imagination. The story tomorrow will be devastatingly romantic and tragic. 'Groom flees wedding with unstable bride and flower girl; tragic fire at old lighthouse claims all lives, including long-lost mother found living as a hermit.' The public loves a tragic tragedy. And as the grieving stepfather and executor... I will reluctantly inherit what remains."
Richard raised the pistol, aiming directly at Julian's forehead.
