Chapter 4 - NIGHT OF FIRE AND LEAD
The apartment was filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder, shattered glass, and burnt drywall. Outside, the rain poured through the broken window, mixing with the dust floating in the air.
Maya crawled on her hands and knees into the children's room. Noah, Ivy, and Owen were huddled together under a pile of blankets, crying hysterically, their hands over their ears.
"Mommy! Mommy!" Ivy sobbed, clutching her bunny so tight the seams were splitting.
"I'm here! Mommy's here!" Maya gathered all three of them into her arms, dragging them across the hardwood floor toward the internal bathroom—the only room without windows. She shoved them into the cast-iron bathtub, piling heavy towels and pillows over them. "Stay down, baby! Don't look up, no matter what you hear!"
"Mommy, who is the man with the gun?" Noah asked, his small voice trembling, his gray eyes wide with shock.
Maya kissed his forehead, her tears warm against his cold skin. "He's... he's going to protect us, Noah. Just stay down!"
In the living room, Sebastian moved like a phantom.
He kicked the heavy oak dining table onto its side, creating an improvised barrier near the hallway. Through the shattered front door—which had been kicked off its hinges—two tactical enforcers dressed in dark gear stepped into the apartment, their rifles raised.
"Clear the left!" one shouted.
Sebastian didn't wait. He leaned out from behind the flipped table and fired twice.
BANG! BANG!
The double-tap was surgically precise. The first enforcer dropped instantly. The second managed to spray a burst of gunfire into the wall before Sebastian’s third round caught him in the chest, dropping him into the hallway.
Sebastian sprinted forward, grabbed the fallen enforcer’s automatic rifle, stripped his extra ammunition clips, and backpedaled into the hallway near the bathroom door.
His phone buzzed wildly in his pocket. He answered it on speaker, keeping his rifle trained on the front door.
"Sebastian!" Marko’s voice came screaming through the speaker over the sound of blaring sirens. "We have heavy movement on your position! It’s Thomas Hart’s private security unit! Clarissa told her father about the kids!"
"I know," Sebastian snarled, firing three rounds through the doorway as another gunman attempted to rush the entry. "They’re in my apartment, Marko. Where are my men?"
"Two minutes away! The Hart family bought off the precinct—local cops are holding back their response! You have to hold out for two minutes!"
"I'll hold out for eternity," Sebastian said, his eyes burning with lethal intent. "Get the armored vans here now!"
Down the hallway, the bathroom door creaked open slightly. Little Noah peeked out, his tiny hand clinging to the doorframe. He wasn't crying anymore. He was staring at Sebastian, watching the blood dripping from a cut on Sebastian’s forehead, watching the gun in his hand.
"Are you the bad guy?" Noah asked softly amid the deafening silence.
Sebastian’s heart shattered into a million pieces. He dropped his rifle down to his side, stepping in front of the doorway so Noah couldn't see the bodies in the hall.
"No, buddy," Sebastian whispered, his voice cracking with emotion. "I'm... I'm your dad. And I will never let anyone hurt you."
Noah looked at him for a long, quiet second. Then, the little boy reached into his pocket and held out his worn toy dog. "Sparky helps when I'm scared. You take him."
Tears blurred Sebastian’s vision. He reached out with a trembling, blood-stained hand and gently took the small stuffed toy. "Thank you, son. I'll keep him safe."
"GET DOWN!" Maya screamed from inside the bathroom, grabbing Noah and pulling him back inside as another grenade smashed through the front window.
FLASH-BANG!
A blinding flash of light and a deafening roar echoed through the living room. Sebastian spun around, shielding his face, but the concussive force knocked him flat on his back. His ears rang violently, his vision spinning into blue and black dots.
Through the haze, he saw two more men in black gear step over the threshold. One of them pointed a shotgun directly at the bathroom door.
"Target confirmed," the gunman said coldly into his comms. "Executing the offspring."
"NO!" Sebastian roared.
Driven by pure, primal paternal instinct, Sebastian didn't reach for his gun. He hurled his entire body across the floor, tackling the gunman at the waist just as the shotgun discharged into the ceiling.
They crashed into the drywall. Sebastian slammed his elbow into the man’s throat, snatched his combat knife from his tactical vest, and neutralized him in a brutal, violent second. The second gunman aimed at Sebastian’s chest, but before he could pull the trigger, a volley of heavy automatic fire tore through the apartment from the hallway outside.
Mark’s tactical team had arrived.
"CLEAR! CLEAR!" Marko’s voice boomed as half a dozen Vale syndicate enforcers flooded the apartment, securing the rooms and eliminating the remaining attackers on the street below.
Marko rushed over to Sebastian, helping him to his feet. "Boss! Are you hit?"
Sebastian pushed Marko away, wiping the blood from his eyes. He didn't care about his injuries. He stumbled into the bathroom.
Maya was crouched over the three children in the bathtub, her body completely covering them, shaking uncontrollably.
Sebastian dropped to his knees beside the tub. He wrapped his massive arms around all four of them, pulling them into his chest, burying his face in Maya’s neck.
May you like
"It's over," Sebastian sobbed, no longer the ruthless mob boss, no longer the billionaire CEO, but a broken man holding his whole world in his arms. "It's over. I've got you. I've got all of you."
Maya didn't push him away this time. She collapsed against his chest, weeping hysterically, while Noah, Ivy, and Owen clung to their father's blood-stained jacket.
