Chapter 5 - Blood and Marble"Down!" Adrien roared, tackling Maya to the floor just as a volley of high-caliber bullets punched through the library windows, shattering glass across the Persian rug where they had stood a moment before.
Glass rained down like jagged diamonds. Adrien hovered protectively over Maya’s body, his heavy frame shielding her from the flying shrapnel. A drop of warm, sticky fluid fell onto her cheek.
Maya’s breath hitched. "Adrien—you're bleeding!"
"It's just a graze," he muttered, though his breathing was ragged. He rolled off her, drawing a suppressed 9mm pistol from his shoulder holster with practiced, lethal speed. He peered out the shattered window into the courtyard below.
Through the smoke and the strobe-like flashes of muzzle fire, dark figures were pouring over the front gates. The Vance cartel had launched a full-scale military assault on the compound.
"Giancarlo!" Adrien barked into his tactical radio, his voice cutting through the chaos. "Status report!"
"They breached the southern perimeter!" Giancarlo’s voice crackled back over the static, punctuated by the sharp pop of gunfire in the background. "They have RPGs, boss! We're falling back to the main staircase!"
Adrien clicked the radio off and looked down at Maya, who was scrambling to her feet beside him, her face pale but remarkably steady.
"Listen to me," Adrien said, grabbing her by both arms. "You are going to take the private elevator to the roof. There’s a chopper waiting. The pilot's name is Miller. Give him this ring"—he slipped a heavy platinum signet ring off his left pinky and pressed it into her palm—"and he will fly you out of state. Do you understand?"
"And what about you?" Maya demanded, her voice sharp as glass. "You're staying to fight them alone?"
"I have a house to defend," Adrien said, a dark, dangerous smile touching his lips—the smile of a king refusing to surrender his throne. "And a traitor to execute."
He turned toward the door, but Maya didn't move. Instead, she grabbed a heavy brass floor lamp from beside the desk, unscrewed the iron base with a single, violent twist, and gripped the heavy metal rod like a club.
Adrien stared at her, dumbfounded. "Maya, what in God's name are you doing?"
"You said I showed grit during the plumbing crisis," Maya said, her eyes flashing with a fierce, unbreakable resolve. "You haven't seen me deal with home invaders."
Before Adrien could argue, the library doors flew open. A masked mercenary dressed in black tactical gear stepped through, leveling an assault rifle straight at Adrien’s chest.
In a fraction of a second, Maya swung the heavy brass rod with all the adrenaline-fueled strength in her body, catching the intruder squarely across the side of his helmet with a resounding CRACK. The mercenary collapsed instantly, unconscious before he hit the floor.
Adrien blinked, looking from the unconscious gunman to Maya, who was casually resting the metal rod over her shoulder like a baseball bat.
May you like
A low chuckle escaped Adrien’s throat—a sound of pure, unadulterated adrenaline and disbelief. "Remind me never to get on your bad side, Miss Collins."
"File that away for future reference," Maya retorted. "Now, are we going to stand here chatting, or are we going to clear this hallway?"
