693 The mafia boss’s savage dog feared everyone—until a clumsy maid accidentally bathed him, and what he chose to do next exposed a secret hidden inside the mansion.

Gabriel stood on the threshold of Evelyn’s modest cottage, the bitter wind whipping his black coat around his knees. Inside, the hearth flickered, casting long shadows across the small room where Titan lay sprawled across the floor, his massive tail thumping once against the rug.

For a long moment, the powerful man who held half of Milwaukee in his grip simply looked at the maid. Evelyn was wrapped in an oversized wool sweater, her wet hair tied back in a loose knot, completely unbothered by the giant beast occupying her living space.

"He doesn't usually make house calls," Gabriel said, his voice deep and quiet against the howling wind.

"He was cold," Evelyn replied, holding the door steady. "And I think he knows you're going to make him wear that heavy chain again if he goes back up to the main house."

Gabriel stepped inside, bringing the crisp scent of winter air and expensive cologne with him. He didn't order Titan to move, nor did he assert his dominance. He merely looked at the dog, then at Evelyn. "Titan was trained as a personal guard dog four years ago. After his hip was shattered in an ambush on the docks, he became aggressive toward everyone. My handlers told me to put him down. I refused, but I couldn't reach him anymore."

"He isn't aggressive," Evelyn said softly. "He's terrified. Every time someone touches his left side, he thinks he's going to be hurt again."

Gabriel raised an eyebrow, looking at her with a new level of scrutiny. "You noticed that after seven days of working here?"

"I noticed it on my first day," she admitted. "I grew up around rescue animals. When a dog growls with his back to a wall, he isn't looking for a fight. He's looking for an exit."

Before Gabriel could respond, Titan suddenly bolted upright. His ears pinned back, and a low, resonant rumble vibrated from his chest. Gabriel’s calm demeanor vanished instantly. Hand moving instinctively inside his coat, he stepped in front of Evelyn, shielding her with his broad frame.

"Stay behind me," Gabriel commanded.

The front window shattered inward with an explosive crash.

A glass bottle wrapped in fuel-soaked rags thundered onto the wooden floorboards, instantly bursting into a wall of aggressive orange flame. Smoke poured into the room, thick and acrid.

Evelyn gasped, coughing as the heat washed over her face. Titan barked furiously, throwing his shoulder against Gabriel as if trying to push his owner toward the back exit.

"Out! Through the kitchen!" Gabriel ordered, pulling a heavy silver pistol from his holster.

Outside, tires screeched against the gravel. Gunfire echoed through the snow—two sharp pops aiming at the cottage facade. Gabriel fired three rapid shots through the broken window, forcing the unseen attacker back into the shadows.

Titan didn't flee toward the back door as instructed. Instead, the massive Cane Corso grabbed the hem of Evelyn’s sweater in his jaw, tugging her forcibly away from the growing blaze toward the kitchen pantry.

"Titan, no! Gabriel!" Evelyn screamed through the smoke.

Gabriel grabbed Evelyn by the arm, helping Titan pull her into the cool air of the back courtyard just as the cottage ceiling collapsed in a shower of sparks. Security guards were running down the hill from the main mansion, flashlights cutting through the falling snow, sirens beginning to blare from the estate’s outer perimeter.

Vanessa Sterling stood on the terrace of the main house in her silk robe, watching the flames swallow the cottage with a look that wasn't terror—it was cold, calculating disappointment. Beside her, Victor Sloane was rapidly typing on a encrypted phone.

Gabriel held Evelyn tight against his chest as they crouched behind the stone wall. She was shaking, covered in soot, her thin slippers ruined by the slush.

"Are you hurt?" Gabriel demanded, his hands framing her face, his thumb brushing away a smudge of ash from her cheek. His eyes were wild, stripped of his usual chilling composure.

"I'm fine," she wheezed. "Titan... Titan saved me."

The dog was standing over them, his heavy body vibrating, head held low as he scanned the darkness. Gabriel looked from the burning cottage to the dog, and finally down at Evelyn.

"This wasn't an accident," Gabriel whispered, his jaw clenched tight enough to shatter glass. "Someone inside my walls tipped off the Moretti family. They thought I was in that cottage."

He stood up, taking off his heavy black wool coat and wrapping it securely around Evelyn’s shivering shoulders. "The estate is no longer safe for you, Evelyn. But I cannot let you leave now. You know too much, and they saw you with me."