Chapter 8 - The Blind Guardian
The rain poured heavily, reflecting the cold steel of Marcus’s weapon. Leo pulled Maisie behind his back, shaking violently. Julian stood motionless, refusing to show fear even in the face of absolute betrayal.
"You forgot one thing, Marcus," Julian said, his voice terrifyingly calm.
"Yeah? What's that?" Marcus sneered, resting his finger on the trigger.
"You brought a weapon into my yard," Julian said, his eyes flicking toward the shadow beside Maisie. "And you threatened the only creature in this city that doesn't care about your money."
Sssss...
Maisie dropped her cane into the mud. She reached down, lightly touching Cyrus's collar, and whispered three simple words into the freezing wind:
"Protect him, Cyrus."
Cyrus didn't bark. He didn't roar. He launched himself through the rain like an artillery shell.
"Shoot it!" Marcus screamed, panicking as he swung his rifle toward the black shadow tearing across the mud.
BANG! BANG!
The shots missed, kicking up mud behind the moving shadow. Cyrus covered twenty yards in under two seconds. He slammed his two-hundred-pound frame directly into Marcus’s chest, the impact sounding like a car crash.
Marcus hit the ground hard, his rifle flying into the darkness. He let out a blood-curdling scream as Cyrus pinned his shoulders to the mud, his jaws stopping less than half an inch from Marcus’s throat, growling with a sound that felt like thunder shaking the earth.
clean, fast action erupted around them.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Julian’s loyal perimeter team, who had been hiding in the shadows of the secondary warehouse, struck. Gunfire echoed through the rain as Marcus’s four mercenaries were disarmed and neutralized within seconds.
The siege was over.
Marcus lay in the mud, crying, his face pale as death while Cyrus stood over him, heavy breath blowing against his trembling skin.
"Don't kill me! Don't let him kill me! Please!" Marcus begged, weeping openly.
Julian walked over slowly, his heavy boots coming to a stop next to Marcus’s head. He looked down at his former lieutenant with utter contempt.
"Cyrus," Julian commanded softly. "Off."
Cyrus didn't move at first. He looked back at Maisie.
Maisie walked forward through the dark, guided by the sound of her brother's footsteps, and softly called out, "Cyrus, come here."
Only then did the great beast step off Marcus’s chest, walking back to Maisie’s side, shaking the rain from his dark coat.
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Julian stepped on Marcus’s chest, pinning him down himself. "Drag him to the basement," Julian ordered his men coldly. "He has a lot of questions to answer about Moretti."
As the guards dragged Marcus away screaming, Julian turned around to face the little blind girl, her brother, and the dog.
