She said, her tone almost soft, and the best part, you'll never know if I'm actually there," she turned and walked away, her footsteps steady, unhurried. She didn't need to look back to know that Mercer wasn't getting up anytime soon. By the next morning, his name was all over the news. Former officer under fire as past complaints resurface. Ex- cop accused of excessive force in previously buried cases.
His victims were finally being heard. The stories he had tried to erase were now the top headlines. His former colleagues refused to comment. The department scrambled to distance itself from him. Mercer was done.
And Natalie, she finally got what she wanted. But Holloway was different. Mercer was weak, reactive, easy to manipulate. Holloway was calculating. He had spent years mastering the system, skirting the rules while keeping his hands clean.
He knew how to play the game, how to make people disappear from records, how to ensure that complaints never saw the light of day. Even after his suspension, after the bar fight, he still believed he could fix things, that all he needed was time and the right connections to pull himself back up. Natalie wasn't going to give him that chance. She had already planted the seeds of his downfall. Internal affairs was watching him now, the whispers of his real estate schemes getting louder, the kind of scrutiny that wouldn't just vanish with a well-placed favor.
But he needed to feel it. She wanted to see the moment the control he clung to so desperately slipped from his grasp, and she knew exactly where to hit him. It started with his money. Holloway had hidden his real estate dealings behind a web of LLC's, each one designed to keep his name off the books while he funneled cash through fraudulent property sales. But Angela had untangled everything with the right digital breadcrumbs and a few well-placed tips.
She had made sure that the IRS started sniffing around, that the city's property fraud unit took a second look at some of his transactions. A single anonymous report had been sent directly to his bank. A freeze on his accounts followed shortly after. Holloway didn't panic. Not at first.
He assumed it was a mistake, an error he could sort out. But then came the calls, the inquiries, the letters from investigators requesting meetings. His empire built on carefully constructed lies was beginning to collapse. And just when he thought it couldn't get worse, Natalie made sure it did. She waited for the right night, watching his patterns, tracking his movements.
His drinking had become a problem. He was spending more nights out, trying to dull the stress with whiskey, trying to convince himself that he was still in control. But he wasn't thinking clearly anymore. She followed him after he left one of his usual bars. His gate uneven, his posture tense.
He walked with his head down, lost in his own thoughts, too distracted to notice that she was closing in. Then she struck. The first hit landed clean. A precise, brutal punch to his ribs that sent him stumbling sideways into the alley beside the bar. He grunted in pain, one hand instinctively going to his side as he wheeled around.
"What the hell?" She drove her fist into his gut, cutting off his words. He gasped, doubling over, eyes wide with shock. He was slow. Too slow.
His reflexes dulled from the alcohol. But even if he had been sober, he wouldn't have been fast enough. You always liked throwing people around, didn't you? She said, her voice eerily calm. Let's see how you handle it.
Holloway snarled, trying to swing at her, but she ducked easily, slamming her knee into his ribs before grabbing his wrist and twisting it behind his back. He let out a strangled curse, his body jerking in resistance. But she had him locked. He was strong, but she was trained. "Still think you're the one in charge?"
She murmured against his ear. "You?" His voice was strained, laced with fury and desperation. You think this is going to change anything? She wrenched his arm higher, making him choke on his own breath.
Oh, it already has. With a final shove, she slammed him against the alley wall, his chest colliding with the brick. He groaned, his forehead pressing against the rough surface as he tried to steady himself. "You think I don't know what you've been doing?" She continued, her voice low.
"All the people you screwed over? The complaints you made disappear? The businesses you crushed just so you could turn a profit. His breathing was labored now, his face twisted in pain. "You don't have proof," he spat.
Natalie smirked. "You'll see for yourself in the morning." She let him go, watching as he stumbled forward, barely managing to stay on his feet. He turned to face her, his lip curled in a snear, but she could see it, the flicker of uncertainty, the realization that she wasn't bluffing. She reached into her pocket and tossed something at his feet.
A crumpled newspaper. Holloway hesitated before glancing down, his face darkening as he read the headline. Corrupt real estate deals linked to suspended officer Brent Holloway. His past, his secrets. Everything he had built was now public knowledge.
He staggered back, his hands trembling at his sides. "You don't know what you've done," he whispered. Natalie stepped closer, meeting his gaze. I know exactly what I've done. She turned and walked away, leaving him standing in the alley, his entire world crashing down around him.
By morning, his name was everywhere. Investigations into his real estate fraud had been officially launched, his properties were under review, his bank accounts frozen, his legal troubles piling up. The department refused to acknowledge him, distancing themselves as quickly as possible. Two days later, he submitted his resignation. A week after that, he was gone.
Natalie watched as the moving truck pulled out of his driveway as Holloway disappeared from the city he had once controlled so easily. It was over. He had spent years manipulating the system, avoiding consequences, hurting people without a second thought. Now he was just another disgraced ex- cop running from the mess he had created. And Natalie.
She had made sure he never forgot who put him there. Natalie stood on her porch, arms crossed loosely over her chest, watching as the moving truck pulled out of Holloway's driveway. He was behind the wheel of his car, following closely behind, his shoulders hunched forward like a man carrying the weight of every decision that had led him to this moment. There was no ceremony, no final attempt at bravado, no last look over his shoulder, no lingering defiance, just a man who had lost, leaving behind everything he had built, everything he had controlled for so long. She had been there when he had power.
Now she was here as he drove away with nothing. For the first time in weeks, she let herself exhale. It was done. The neighborhood felt different already, lighter, no longer stained by his presence. The creeping anxiety she had carried with her, the feeling of being watched, of waiting for the next move, was gone.
The street was quiet, calm in a way it hadn't been since the night everything started. A car door shut behind her, the familiar weight of footsteps approaching across the pavement. You actually going to enjoy this moment or are you already planning your next war? Natalie smirked without turning around. You always got to ruin the mood, Angela.
Angela stepped up beside her, her posture relaxed, hands tucked into the pockets of her jacket. The night was still. The only sound, the distant hum of a passing car blocks away. Unlike Natalie, she wasn't watching the truck disappear down the street, taking Holloway with it. She was watching her.