Chapter 7 - A DON’S WRATH
"Get down!" Aleandro roared.
He tackled Sophia to the plush carpet just as the mahogany doors of the library splintered. Bullets tore through the wood, shredding the expensive upholstery of the reading chairs and shattering the crystal decanter on the desk.
In the darkness, Aleandro was a phantom. He rolled off Sophia, drawing a heavy matte-black pistol from the holster at the small of his back. He didn't hesitate. He fired twice through the splintered door. A heavy thud echoed from the hallway, accompanied by a gurgling groan.
"Emma!" Sophia screamed, scrambling on her hands and knees toward the adjoining door to the master suite.
Aleandro grabbed her ankle, yanking her back as another volley of bullets ripped through the wall. "Stay down! The walls are reinforced, but the doors are breached!"
He crawled toward her, his body shielding hers. "Lorenzo has made his move. He cut the main power and the backup generators. He’s using his loyalists in my guard to execute a coup."
"We have to get Emma!" Sophia cried, tears of sheer panic streaming down her face.
"I have her," a gruff voice called out from the darkness of the master suite.
Sophia gasped as a massive silhouette appeared in the doorway. It was Luca, the head of security, bleeding heavily from a wound in his shoulder, holding a terrified, whimpering Emma tightly against his chest with his good arm. He held a submachine gun in the other.
"Luca," Aleandro commanded. "Status."
"Lorenzo bought off half the night shift, Boss," Luca grunted, dropping to one knee and handing Emma to Sophia. Sophia wrapped her arms around her daughter, crushing the little girl to her chest, whispering frantic prayers into her hair. "They’re clearing the ground floor. They’re coming up the main stairs. We have maybe two minutes before they breach the reinforced gates at the top of the landing."
"Can we call for backup?" Sophia asked.
"Cell jammers are active," Luca replied grimly. "We’re cut off."
Aleandro’s silhouette seemed to expand in the darkness. The civilized veneer of the billionaire CEO was entirely gone. Standing before them was the apex predator of the New York underworld.
"Luca, take them to the panic room behind the wine cellar," Aleandro ordered, checking the magazine of his pistol. "The service elevator runs on an independent hydraulic line. It bypasses the main grid."
"What about you?" Sophia grabbed his arm. Her fingers dug into his custom-tailored sleeve. "Aleandro, they will kill you!"
He looked down at her. In the faint moonlight filtering through the storm, she saw the feral, bloody smile on his face. It was terrifying. It was magnificent.
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"This is my house, Sophia," he whispered, leaning down to press a hard, bruising kiss to her mouth. It tasted of adrenaline and promises. "And no one touches my family. Go."
He turned and kicked open the shattered library doors, stepping out into the blood-slicked hallway. The sound of gunfire erupted again, but this time, it was accompanied by the terrifying roar of a Don claiming his territory.
