Chapter 9 - The Flash of Gold
"Wait!" Clara screamed, stepping directly between Julian and the gun.
Richard paused, his finger hovering over the trigger. "Move, Clara. Don't make this messier than it needs to be."
"You want the estate?" Clara held up her left hand, displaying her bare ring finger. "I haven't signed the marriage certificate! The legal transfer hasn't happened. If I die now, the trust goes into probate for decades. You won't get a single dime!"
Richard’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Probate is annoying, but manageable. I have judges in my pocket."
"Not for international accounts, you don't," Evelyn interjected, her voice cold and steady. "Tell him, Clara. Tell him what my father built into the foundation agreement."
Evelyn reached into her pocket and pulled out a small, heavy silver key—the matching key to the internal lock mechanism of the gold locket Clara held.
"My father knew Richard was a thief," Evelyn said clearly. "The master security code to the offshore holding accounts in Zurich isn't in a bank vault. It’s micro-engraved inside the secondary backing of that gold locket. Without the key and the locket together, those accounts freeze permanently the moment I die."
Richard looked at the small silver key in Evelyn's hand, then at the gold locket in Clara's hand. Greed flickered wildly in his eyes, overriding his ruthless composure.
"Hand them over," Richard demanded, stepping forward. "Both of them. Now."
"Take them," Clara said.
She hurled the gold locket with all her strength toward the open window behind Richard, aimed directly at the storm-tossed ocean below.
"No!" Richard shrieked.
Instinctively, Richard lunged toward the window to catch the flying piece of gold.
It was the opening Julian needed.
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Julian charged forward like a linebacker, slamming his shoulder straight into Richard’s chest. The impact knocked Richard backward into his two security guards. The gun went off with a muffled POW, the bullet shattering the glass of the window above.
"Run!" Julian yelled.
