“Peyton,” he breathed, his voice a frail
thread. “They
told me… they told me you abandoned me.”
I dropped to my knees in the dirt, tore off my heavy winter coat, and wrapped it securely around his frail frame. A cold, lethal rage burned through my veins so violently that my trembling hands instantly became perfectly steady.
Behind us, my father stepped into the yard, his hands raised defensively. “Peyton, look… this looks bad, but you don’t understand the financial stress we’ve been under.”
I reached into my pocket, pressed the hidden emergency speed-dial on my department phone, and brought the device to my ear.
“Captain Caldwell,” dispatch answered instantly.
My parents and brother froze on the grass.
“Activate Major Crimes and an emergency medical response team to my GPS coordinates,” I said, my voice dropping into a freezing, clinical register. “We have an active case of unlawful imprisonment, aggravated elder abuse, document fraud, and attempted homicide.
Three suspects
on site. Treat them as dangerous.”
Internet & Telecom
Wyatt let out a nervous, high-pitched laugh. “Captain? What the hell are you talking about?”
I rose to my full height, stepping out of the shed to face them. For years, they had mistaken my quiet nature for absolute weakness.
I smiled, the expression entirely devoid of warmth. “You really should have asked what kind of government job I actually do.”
