Page 143 of Shattered In Darkness

Now there’s nothing left but the jagged wreckage.

Her voice cracks. “What else? What aren’t you telling me?”

I take a deep breath, preparing to drag the filth up. “NorthLine was never just a shipping company. It was how Marcus and Dad moved people, money, anything they needed. Dad covered for Marcus. He did worse than cover. He made threats disappear, ruined witnesses, wrecked lives. Marcus did the violence, but Dad set the stage, cleaned it up after. But, a few years ago, Marcus staged mom’s death and had it covered. Richard found out and it started a war between them.”

Lola meets my eyes, but this is my burden to bear.

“All those years—he made me his fixer. Followed dirty men to their graves, erased evidence, sometimes more. He said it was family loyalty. Really, it was just power. Survival.” My voice goes dead. “He didn’t care about the cost. He only cared about never being exposed.”

Sophie shakes her head. “No. You’re lying. Dad was strict, but he was—he wasn’t⁠—”

I cut her off. “He was. I found the files. The videos, the ledgers. He kept trophies, Soph. He wanted me to be like him. When I said no, he made threats. Sometimes worse. I’m not proud of what I did for him. But it ends now.”

Sophie’s nails dig into her arms, deep red marks. “What about Marcus? What about the others?”

“He’s gone,” I say. Final, absolute. “He won’t bother you. He’ll never touch anyone again.”

She looks up, wet brown eyes, terror blooming. “Is he…? Is he⁠—”

I stare back, expression cold. “He’s not coming back.”

Sophie covers her mouth, almost gagging. “You⁠—”

I cut her off. “I did what was necessary.”

Silence. The grave kind. Lola holds Sophie, but Sophie just shakes, lost in her own private nightmare.

I stand there, the weight of a thousand crimes pressing on my chest. Burnt out. Empty. Not even sure what I am, now that my job is finished.

Sophie looks up at me, hate and heartbreak fighting for air. “So that’s it? You just destroy everything and walk away?”

I almost laugh. “Nothing about this is walking away. It’s blood on the floor. It’s a memory that doesn’t fade.”

She rocks herself, back and forth, muttering. “He was my dad. He loved us. He—he—” The words get stuck.

“He lied to you,” I say. “He lied to everyone. I’m sorry for that.”

Lola strokes Sophie’s hair. She offers a crumpled tissue, a whisper of comfort Sophie won’t accept.

Sophie’s eyes glass over, fixed on the TV. Another anchor, more talking heads. The world dissects our family like vultures. Every secret, every sin, out for everyone to see.

“What will you do?” I ask, low. “Run damage control? Try to pretend it didn’t happen?”

She glares at me. “You don’t know what it’s like. To have your whole life shredded in front of you.”

I nod. “I do. You just never saw it happen before now.”

She crumples again, this time pressing her head into Lola’s shoulder. “What’s wrong with us? Why couldn’t we just be normal?”

No answer. There never was.

I kneel, meeting her broken gaze. “The only thing wrong was him. You did nothing but survive.”

She shakes her head, tears streaking down. “I don’t believe you.”

I stare at her. “Believe what you want. I’m done paying for his sins.”

I look at Lola. She’s shaking, too, but quieter. Resigned. Like she expected all of this.