Chapter 5 - Fire and Blood
The mahogany door exploded inward in a shower of splinters and shredded wood.
Before the first intruder could fully cross the threshold, Victor Costello moved with terrifying, blinding speed. The tactical shotgun in his hands roared twice, the deafening blast shaking the walls of the study. The lead gunman was thrown backward through the open doorway, disappearing into the dark corridor with a heavy thud.
“Cover the flank!” a harsh voice shouted from the hallway, followed immediately by a rain of suppressive fire. Bullets chewed into the rich mahogany bookcases, showering the room with wood shavings and paper dust.
Sadi ducked low behind the heavy oak desk, her ears ringing violently. Fear threatened to paralyze her limbs, but the memory of Sam—safe, smiling, and healthy in his hospital bed—flashed through her mind. She refused to let anyone take this away. She refused to let Victor die.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she raised the pistol Victor had given her, peered over the edge of the desk, and pulled the trigger.
The kickback nearly broke her wrist, the deafening report echoing off the stone walls. In the doorway, the second gunman—who had been lunging forward to flank Victor—let out a sharp cry of pain as her bullet clipped his shoulder, spinning him off balance.
That single, critical distraction was all Victor needed. With lethal efficiency, he stepped out from his cover, fired his weapon twice, and neutralized the remaining two intruders in rapid succession.
Silence descended upon the ruined study as quickly as a storm rolling in off the ocean. The air was thick with the acrid, metallic stench of gunpowder and ozone.
Victor lowered his shotgun, his chest heaving slightly under his ruined shirt. He turned around slowly, his dark eyes scanning the room before locking onto Sadi, who was still crouched behind the desk, trembling violently as the pistol slipped from her numb fingers and clattered onto the rug.
In two long strides, Victor was across the room. He knelt beside her, grabbing her shoulders.
“Sadi! Are you hit?” he demanded, his voice uncharacteristically frantic as his hands roamed quickly over her arms and torso, searching for wounds.
“No,” she whispered, tears finally breaking free and streaming down her cheeks. “I’m… I’m okay. Are you?”
“I’m fine,” Victor breathed. A profound, overwhelming wave of emotion washed over his harsh features. He pulled her hard against his chest, wrapping his strong arms around her trembling frame, burying his face in her hair. “You fool,” he murmured fiercely against her ear. “I told you to run. Why didn’t you run?”
“I couldn’t leave you,” she sobbed softly into his shoulder, clinging to him as if he were her only anchor in a violent storm.
Outside in the hallway, the sound of running footsteps and frantic shouts echoed through the estate. A moment later, Marcus and half a dozen elite guards burst into the ruined study, weapons drawn, stopping dead in their tracks at the carnage before them.
Marcus took in the scene—the fallen intruders, the shattered door, and their feared boss holding the young head housekeeper tightly in his arms.
“Boss,” Marcus said, lowering his weapon slightly, his eyes wide with shock. “The perimeter is secure. The rival faction behind this—the Morosco family—we traced their comms. They tried to make a move while you were vulnerable.”
Victor slowly released Sadi, standing up to his full, towering height. The warmth he had shown her a second before evaporated, replaced instantly by the cold, calculating mask of the city’s undisputed kingpin.
“Burn the bodies,” Victor said quietly, his voice dropping to a terrifying register. “And send a message to Don Morosco. Tell him his little test failed. Tomorrow morning, I want every single one of his shipping yards seized, his accounts frozen, and his lieutenants brought to me in chains. I’m going to dismantle his empire brick by brick.”
“Yes, Boss,” Marcus replied, turning sharply and barking orders to the cleanup crew.
Victor looked back down at Sadi, who was slowly pushing herself to her feet, wiping her face with the back of her sleeve.
May you like
“Come with me,” Victor said softly, offering her his hand.
He led her out of the ruined study, away from the blood and the smoke, down a private corridor into the master wing of the mansion—a sanctuary no servant had ever been permitted to enter.
