Chapter 5 - Out of the Ashes
The trap had been laid with meticulous precision. Julian wasn’t merely sending assassins; he was using the machinery of the state to paint Damian as a rogue terrorist, ensuring that any retaliation would bring federal firepower down on their heads.
Damian walked into the bedroom. Elena was sitting upright against the pillows, her face pale, but her dark eyes were lucid and alert. She held the swaddled baby pressed tight against her collarbone. Her knuckles were bruised, and the bandage across her collar showed a bloom of fresh crimson, yet her gaze was steady.
""I heard,"" Elena whispered, her voice gravelly from the ordeal. ""He wants Leo.""
""Leo?"" Damian's eyes softened for a fraction of a second as he looked down at the boy.
""That was what we agreed on, wasn't it?"" she asked, a faint, defiant smirk touching her cut lips. ""Leon Vance. A lion.""
""A lion,"" Damian agreed, his hand coming to rest against her shoulder, feeling the deep tremor running through her muscles. ""We need to move. The penthouse is compromised.""
""Where do we go?"" Mateo asked from the doorway, reloading a fresh magazine into his sidearm. ""The roads will have checkpoints within the hour.""
Elena looked down at the baby, then up at Damian with sudden, icy resolve. ""We don't run to the borders. We go straight into the serpent's den. Take us to the old estate in the Blackwood Valley.""
May you like
Damian stared at her. ""The valley estate has been sealed since our father died.""
""Exactly,"" Elena said. ""And the subterranean vault has weapons Julian doesn't even know exist.""
