Chapter 10 - The Unfinished Repair
The afternoon sun broke through the gray autumn clouds, casting a warm, golden glow over the police cruisers and the red-tagged mansion.
Richard was gone, driven away in the back of the county transport vehicle, while Melissa sat weeping in the passenger seat of her friend's car, which had just arrived to pick her up. The multi-million-dollar illusion they had built over thirty years of fraud and intimidation had vanished in less than six hours, washed away by county water inspectors and an old man with a wrench.
Beatrice gathered her files, stepping up to shake my hand with a grip surprisingly firm for her age. "The legal transfer will take a few days to clear probate, Emily, but your father ensured everything was ironclad. The district belongs to you now."
"Thank you, Beatrice," I said, returning the handshake firmly.
"Don't thank me. Thank a man who knows how to read the fine print," she replied with a wink, turning toward a waiting town car parked down the block.
As Beatrice's car pulled away, I turned back to my dad, who was busy tossing his toolbox into the back of his pickup truck. The pool behind us still sparkled under the midday sun, crystal clear and pristine, though the gaping hole beside it served as a permanent reminder of what lay beneath the surface.
"So," I crossed my arms, leaning against the side of his truck with a grin. "What's our next job, boss?"
Dad pulled a small, worn notebook from his back pocket, flipped open the cover, and ran his finger down a handwritten list of local addresses.
"Well," Dad mused, adjusting his cap. "There's a leaky valve over at the municipal waterworks office downtown. The city manager called me about an hour ago. Seems they're having trouble shutting off the main supply line to the executive suites."
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He looked up at me, his eyes twinkling with quiet amusement.
"Think you can take the afternoon off to help me carry my tools?"
