Chapter 5 - The White Devil
Julian smiled, a grotesque, razor-thin expression that lacked any warmth. Behind him, four heavily armed mercenaries formed a defensive perimeter, their assault rifles raised toward the cellar threshold.
Dante shoved Elena back and kicked the door open, stepping into the corridor with his blade drawn and his body angled to obscure his daughters. "Julian. You crawled out of your sewer."
"Sewer? Please, Dante, civility," Julian chuckled, leaning against his cane. "You stole something that didn't belong to you ten years ago. You thought you could hide in the hills of northern Italy, playing mafia don while hoarding the blood of the Covenant."
"I took my wife and my daughters away from your lunatic cult," Dante growled, taking a measured step forward. "Anna died to keep them away from you."
"Anna died because she was weak," Julian said smoothly. "Her body rejected the transformation. But her daughter... look at Grace. She survived the Nightshade bloom, didn't she? Her senses are awakening. The Covenant’s true heir is finally ripe."
Grace stepped out from behind Dante’s overcoat, her posture upright, the milky glaze still coating her eyes.
"Grace, get back," Dante snarled without taking his eyes off Julian.
"He smells like bitter almonds, Father," Grace stated calmly. "He is poisoned. He has three days left to live."
Julian’s smile vanished instantly. His pale eyes widened in sudden, frantic rage. The tap of his cane abruptly stopped. "Kill the father. Bring me the child alive."
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Before the mercenaries could squeeze their triggers, Elena threw a flash grenade she had salvaged from the cellar floor. A blinding white flare tore through the hallway, accompanied by an ear-splitting bang that sent shockwaves through Dante's skull.
In the flash of white, Dante lunged forward to kill Julian, but when the smoke cleared two seconds later, Julian was gone—and Lily’s teddy bear was lying abandoned in a pool of fresh blood.
