Page 91 of Nemesis

“You and your mother were supposed to be out that night. You two were just a mere inconvenient collateral. I never liked loose ends, so I put a bullet between your bitch of a mother’s eyes and then emptied the last bullet on you,” he finished, a smug grin on his face.

Blood started pounding furiously in my ears.

Inconvenient collateral.

Loose ends.

My nostrils flared, an onslaught of white heat zipping down my spine.

I walked away from him and dropped my knife onto the plastic tarp. I pulled my gun from the holster strapped to my thigh and stood straight.

“Victor Morales, you took everything I had, everything I loved. It’s been a pleasure destroying all you’ve built.”

I clicked the safety off, pointing the barrel up at him. The shocked expression on his face combined with the coolness of the barrel under my fingers provided a satisfaction I couldn’t explain.

With this gun, I would be able to wash away everything I no longer wished to feel—pain, grief, loneliness, the nightmares that kept haunting my dreams.

The time has come for your end, Victor Morales.

With my right arm extended, I asked. “Any parting wishes?”

A slow grin crept across my face and before he was able to answer, I muttered the last words he’d said to me when he thought he’d gotten rid of me.

“Sleep tight, Morales.”

My fingers curled against the trigger, tightening. I shot without flinching, emptying the chamber.

It took three bullets to alter my life, but I only needed one to end it all.

The ringing sound bounced against the walls as a fresh bullet hole appeared between his eyes. His head slumped as dark blood gushed from the wound, staining Morales’s stunned face before pooling down the covered concrete floor.

The stench of blood quickly filled the air, burning the hairs of my nostrils. I felt wetness drip on my face and wiped my cheek.

I brought my hand in front of me, noticing a mixture of blood and brain matter coating my fingers. A wave of nausea rolled through me, but I bit down on my tongue and swallowed the bile that surged in my throat

A sense of solace washed over me, the peace I’d been seeking seeping into every inch of my skin. Although his death wouldn't wash away my grief, there was relief in knowing I’d obtained the answers I’d been looking for.

I’d finally be able to rest, to bring my parents a justice they never were granted.

Elena and I stood side by side, staring down at the dead body.

I wasn’t much of a hugger, but something within me sprang and I turned to her, embracing her tight. “This is over. You’re free.”

I released her and walked away from his body, my footsteps halting in front of the table on the side. I grabbed what I needed and walked back over to her.

“She’s coming to pick you up and take you wherever you want,” I explained, handing her a backpack with her new passport and some cash so she could finally live her life in peace.

“Did you have to shoot him between the eyes?” Valentina asked in my ear, chuckling.

For the past few months, I’d been taking a cut for every vessel and container coming in and out of the city on my husband’s behalf, and his business partners were about to find out he’d double-crossed them, only to find Morales already dead.

“It's the Barreras’ signature. The police won’t question it and close the investigation since they have them in their pocket,” I replied.

Valentina was a hacking genius and ex-sniper I’d met through the dark web when I was digging into Morales’s life. She worked for The Collector, a vigilante who lent a helping hand to those in need, whether it was to clear a debt or to seek retribution in exchange for a favor. If we didn’t deliver, he’d come to collect his debt.

Valentina was actually the one behind the brunch shooting. The shooting that allowed me to spend the best week of my life.

Theo.