Chapter 2 - The Only Exit Left
Screams tore the air apart. Shards of chandeliers rained down like razor-sharp hail.
Evelyn threw herself behind the marble bar as bullets shredded the liquor displays, showering the floor in amber whiskey and jagged glass. Through the haze of drywall dust and cordite, she saw Lorenzo move not with panic, but with predatory precision.
He didn’t run toward the north fire exit where his security team would usually evacuate. Instead, he lunged across the shattered table, dragging his thick-necked enforcer down just as a sniper round blew the upholstery to ribbons.
Celeste had vanished into the service corridor.
Lorenzo drew a matte-black pistol from beneath his tailored jacket, firing three measured rounds through the smoke. Two masked gunmen in tactical gear collapsed in the entryway. Then, through the choking fog of the dining room, Lorenzo’s eyes locked onto Evelyn trembling behind the overturned service cart.
He broke into a sprint, grabbed her by the collar of her uniform vest, and hauled her to her feet with one arm.
May you like
“You stay on my heels,” he commanded, his voice dead calm amidst the chaos. “Or you die on this floor.”
---
