Chapter 5 - The Tables Turn
The moment Elena was clear of his body, Alejandro’s hand dropped.
—Take him, Alejandro ordered sharply.
Before Diego could raise his revolver to fire, two of the elite bodyguards closed the distance between them in a flash of motion. One delivered a lightning-fast palm strike to Diego’s wrist, sending the silver revolver flying into the dark water of the swimming pool with a sharp splash. The second guard swept Diego’s legs out from under him, slamming him face-first onto the dirty pool tiles with bone-crunching force.
Diego groaned, struggling against the heavy weight pressing him into the concrete, his expensive designer shirt tearing as he was subdued with military efficiency.
Alejandro ignored him completely, rushing past the struggling man to drop to his knees beside his daughter. He shed his expensive cashmere overcoat in an instant, wrapping it tenderly around Elena’s shivering, bruised shoulders.
—I've got you, Elena. You're coming home with me right now. Medical teams are waiting in the lead vehicle, Alejandro whispered, his voice thick with emotion as he brushed the wet hair away from her pale forehead.
—My baby... is the baby okay, Papa? Elena sobbed, burying her face in the warm fabric of her father’s coat as the trauma of the past year finally broke her defenses.
—The best specialists in the country are on standby, my love. Your child, and you, are going to be just fine, Alejandro reassured her, scooping her up effortlessly into his arms despite his advancing years, carrying her away from the nightmare toward the waiting warmth of the SUV.
As Elena was safely loaded into the heated cabin of the vehicle, where a team of private medics immediately went to work administering IV fluids and warm blankets, Diego was hauled up roughly to his feet by two guards.
His face was bruised, his clothes ruined, and his entire empire reduced to ash in less than an hour. He was shoved violently against the side of the stone fountain, forced to watch as Alejandro turned back to face him one last time before stepping into the vehicle.
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—You will spend the rest of your natural life in a maximum-security federal penitentiary, Diego, Alejandro said quietly, his voice devoid of anger, sounding more like a judge delivering an absolute sentence. —Every court in the land will ensure you never see the light of day again. Enjoy the cold water. You seemed to like it so much.
The heavy doors of the SUVs slammed shut with a definitive, mechanical thud. One by one, the convoy turned around in the expansive courtyard, their tires kicking up gravel as they descended the driveway, leaving Diego utterly alone in the dark, freezing night with the sound of the dripping hose.
