CHAPTER 39: DECIDER

SHOCK AND DISBELIEF

The entire bank was frozen.

Rose's hands trembled as she took a step back. Her voice, filled with both fear and disbelief, broke the silence.

"What kind of a man are you?"

Madison and Darmian didn't speak. They couldn't. The sheer brutality of Alexander's decision had left them speechless.

The teenage boy, now on his knees, clutched his father's unmoving body. His eyes were wide with grief and shock, his breath coming out in short, panicked gasps.

And Alexander?

He laughed.

THE REVEAL

The boy turned toward him, his face twisted in pain. "You… you killed my father!"

But then—

The security guard groaned. His fingers twitched.

He was alive.

The boy gasped, his sorrow turning into confusion.

Slowly, the guard sat up, his chest heaving, the bulletproof vest beneath his uniform absorbing the impact.

Alexander grinned.

"Relax, kid. I knew you'd be too much of a crybaby if I actually killed him."

The guard, still shaken but unharmed, looked down at the dent in his vest. He placed a hand over his heart, feeling the steady beat beneath.

Then, he looked at Alexander.

A THANK YOU… AND A HUG

The man staggered to his feet. He looked at Alexander, at his own son, and then back at the detective who had just saved them both in the most ruthless way possible.

Then—

He walked forward and hugged his son tightly.

The boy's hands clutched his father's back, his fear melting into relief.

"T-Thank you…" the man finally said, his voice hoarse. "I don't know how to repay you."

Alexander waved him off. "You already did."

The others?

They stood there, in awe—yet again.