Chapter 8
The dull, concussive boom vibrated through the ground beneath their feet, followed a second later by a thick plume of black smoke rising rapidly above the treeline near the eastern wing of the manor.
Julian dropped his hands from the gate, spinning around to stare at the distant column of smoke. "The eastern wing," he breathed, his face turning ashen. "That's where the primary server room is located. That's where all the digital records of the corporate accounts are stored."
"She’s burning the evidence," Agent Vance said calmly, stepping through the now fully opened gate without waiting for an invitation. He walked past Julian, stopping briefly to look down at Clara's still form. "Your mother is thorough, I'll give her that. She leaves no loose ends."
The state trooper drew his service weapon instinctively, leveling it at the federal agent. "Hold it right there! No one moves further onto this property until I verify your credentials and secure the perimeter."
Agent Vance didn't even blink. He reached slowly into his inner coat pocket and tossed a heavy manila folder directly onto the state trooper's chest. The trooper caught it out of reflex, flipping open the cover to reveal a signed federal directive bearing the signature of the Attorney General.
"The property is under federal seizure as of 0800 hours," Agent Vance said without breaking stride. "You can secure the perimeter from the outside, officer. I have business with Elena Vance."
Julian didn't wait for the trooper to debate jurisdiction. He swooped down, scooped Clara into his arms once more, and bolted past the agent toward the path leading back up to the burning manor. Sarah scrambled after them, her grey uniform snagging briefly on a low-hanging briar before she tore herself free.
"Mr. Vance! Wait for me!" Sarah cried, her breath coming in ragged gasps as she chased them up the gravel driveway.
As they cleared the final bend in the road, the full scale of the disaster came into view. The grand wooden doors of the manor stood wide open. Billowing clouds of grey smoke rolled out from the high arched windows of the library, carrying the unmistakable scent of scorched paper and burning electrical insulation.
Standing on the front stone terrace, silhouetted against the rising flames, was Elena. Her slicked-back dark hair was undisturbed, her black top pristine. She held a heavy brass fireplace poker in one hand, calmly watching the smoke pour from the broken windows.
Julian stopped fifty feet away, his arms trembling under Clara's weight. He stared up at his mother with eyes burning with unadulterated hatred.
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"You burned the servers," Julian shouted over the roar of the fire. "You destroyed decades of history just to hide your own crimes!"
Elena turned her head slowly downward, her aggressive expression hardening into something truly demonic. "I burned the rot, Julian. And if you take one more step closer to this house, you will join your wife in the ash."
