EMP Catastrophe , Hamilton, Grace [crime books to read txt] 📗

handed him the .45. Matthew held the gun loosely in one hand and squinted in the afternoon light, wondering how such a beautiful blue sky could exist on a day that had nearly ended with him killing someone.

Honestly, it still might end that way. Yet now that Samuel had been removed from the hotel, the adrenaline that had surged to protect his family—and that had driven Matthew to violence—slowly drained away, leaving him exhausted. He wasn’t sure he could point the gun at Samuel now and pull the trigger. Before, he’d had no other choice. His mother was in danger. Samuel had a shotgun pointed at her, and he had turned her into his personal servant. Samuel had tried to take their home. The list of wrongs was long, but Matthew’s golden heart—while battered and tarnished and cracked—still beat in his chest.

If Samuel lived, he might always be a threat to Matthew’s family. He might come back, try to take their home again, but that was all speculation. He might also slink home to Galena, curl up with a bottle of booze, and reflect on what insanity he had caused because of his greed. If Matthew shot him now, it took away all options. Death might be the final ending for Samuel, but it would leave a mark on Matthew. A breeze caused the grass around him to rustle. The trees swayed gently around them. Matthew flipped the safety on the gun. He wouldn’t use it unless he absolutely had to.

Samuel groaned again, this time in pain, and rolled back and forth. His eyelids cracked open, showing a sliver of fury. Finally, Samuel blinked and gasped, propping himself up on his elbow while Matthew aimed the gun at him. Matthew had a message to get across, and he wanted Samuel’s full attention.

Samuel sneered up at him. “You got the guts to use that thing? It’s not a toy. You think you can take out Samuel West?”

“We already did,” Matthew said and beside him, Ruth grinned. “You want to try us again? My mother could smack you on the head and see if that knocks any sense into you.”

“Maybe next time I’ll have to give just as good as I get,” Samuel said, glowering at Ruth. “I’ll make you pay double for what you did to me, hell I’ll make you pay tenfold, you stupid—”

“You try and return here and I will shoot you,” Matthew interrupted as Samuel’s threats to his mother brought on a new wave of anger within him. “I won’t hesitate. Maybe I should shoot you now.”

“This hotel was always meant to me mine.” Samuel spat at him and tried to stand up, but Matthew clicked the safety off and raised his eyebrows at Samuel in warning.

Samuel grimaced and sank back down to the ground. “If you don’t use that gun on me like a real man would, then I’ll just come back and take what’s mine some other time and you’ll never see it coming.”

“You won’t like what you find,” Matthew said. “I promise, next time I’ll be a much better marksman. Or should I decide to take you out now? I don’t think I’ll miss, being this close.” He took a step closer as he felt that instinct to take out the threat looking to hurt his family building inside of him again.

A scream of denial suddenly cut through the air. Chills ran down Matthew’s spine as he heard the high-pitched wail and he glanced up to see the source of the cry. In the driveway, hands up and pointed to the sky, stood a petite figure wearing a fringed jacket. “Don’t do it, Matthew!” Jade yelled, cupping one hand around her mouth and jogging toward him. “Seriously! Don’t do it! Let him go!”

Matthew snarled silently at her. The fingernail gouges along his wrists from their fight—now scabbed superficial wounds—reminded him to be careful of who to trust. “What are you doing here?” he yelled back. “Don’t you dare come any closer.” He kept the gun trained on Samuel, but at the same time, he wished he had something to defend himself against her, too. He anticipated her jumping on him and trying to wrestle the gun from him again. Could it be that she and Samuel were working together? Maybe they were both in on Samuel’s ridiculous plan to take the hotel away from Matthew and his family. How could that even be possible? Had Jade pegged them before they even met?

Jade slowed but still kept creeping closer, as if approaching a skittish horse.

Ruth put a warning hand on his shoulder and asked in a low voice, “Who is that, Matt?”

“Her name is Jade,” Matthew said through gritted teeth. “We met her while walking here. She shot Dad.”

Ruth’s face paled. “Your father’s been shot?”

“Please, Matt,” Jade pleaded, taking a tentative step closer. “I’m so sorry about everything. I followed you here, I wasn’t sure—”

“Matthew Riley, you don’t let that woman take one step closer!” David’s voice bellowed through the air, and the door to the hotel slammed back as David burst through it, walking down the stairs with anger in his eyes. Behind David, Patton lingered in the doorway, his mouth open in surprise when he saw Matthew holding Samuel at gunpoint. Ruth let out a small shriek, bolting away from Matthew to run towards her husband.

“It’s okay, Patton,” Matthew said to him as Ruth enveloped David in a hug. David wrapped his good arm around her waist, even as his eyes darted to Jade and back to Matthew. Patton looked like he wanted to say something, but he couldn’t get the words out. Matthew wanted to run to him and pull him into an embrace, but he had to deal with these lowlifes first. He couldn’t let them get the upper hand and hurt his son.

David wrapped one arm around Ruth’s waist, and they walked back towards Matthew and Jade. Tears streaked down Jade’s cheeks as she looked at David. “I’m so sorry, David,