Chapter 6 - Blood on the Marble
Before the mercenary could pull the trigger, Christian threw himself directly in front of the barrel.
Thwack! Thwack!
Two rounds slammed into Christian’s chest. The impact threw him back against the tunnel wall, a sharp groan ripping from his throat as he slumped to his knees.
"Christian!" Elena screamed.
Marcus fired back instantly from behind them. Three precise shots dropped the point man, while Marcus charged forward, tackling the second mercenary through the breached doorway into the cold midnight air outside.
Elena dropped to her knees beside Christian, her hands frantically tearing at his ruined shirt. "No, no, no! Christian, look at me!"
To her immense relief, the bullets had flattened against a concealed Kevlar vest Christian wore under his bespoke suit, though the sheer kinetic force had shattered his ribs. He gasped for air, coughing up a spatter of blood, but his hand shot out and clamped onto her wrist.
"I'm... I'm okay," he wheezed, his face pale with agony. "Just broken ribs. Get Leo... out to the boat dock. The keys are in the ignition of the offshore racer."
"I'm not leaving you behind to die twice," Elena said fiercely. She hauled him up by his uninjured shoulder with a strength born of pure adrenaline. Leo was gripping her belt loop, crying silently, terrified by the gunfire. "Up! Move your feet, Christian!"
They stumbled through the exit hatch out into the dense pine woods bordering the Hudson River. Fifty yards ahead, the private dock extended into the dark, churning water. Behind them, the grand Sterling estate was ablaze, orange flames licking the night sky as explosions tore through the upper floors.
Footsteps crunched heavily on the gravel path behind them.
Marcus stumbled out of the brush, clutching a bleeding gunshot wound on his upper thigh, his tactical rifle empty. "Sir! There are four more on the tree line! They’re cutting off the dock!"
Christian leaned heavily against Elena, pulling a compact remote detonator from his inner pocket.
"Marcus," Christian gasped, his voice tight. "Did you clear the staff from the east wing before they breached?"
"All kitchen staff and security evacuated through the southern ravine ten minutes ago," Marcus confirmed, grimacing in pain. "Only the mercenaries and Victoria are left inside the main structure."
Elena looked at the detonator in Christian's hand. "What is that?"
"My father didn't just build an estate," Christian said coldly, his gray eyes reflecting the roaring flames above. "He built a fortress with a scorched-earth system under the foundation. If Blackwood wants the Sterling empire, they can have the ashes."
Christian flipped the red safety switch and slammed his thumb onto the trigger.
A subterranean roar tore through the earth. A concussive shockwave knocked them to their knees as the entire mansion collapsed inward in a blinding fireball of white and orange flame, burying the mercenaries, the evidence, and Victoria’s screams under ten thousand tons of pulverized stone.
Silence settled over the riverbank, broken only by the crackle of burning pine needles and Leo’s soft whimpers.
May you like
"It’s over," Elena whispered, her body trembling with exhaustion.
"No," Christian said, looking out toward the dark river where the distant headlights of three unmarked black patrol boats were cutting through the fog, closing in on their dock. "They didn't just come by land. They own the river."
