Chapter 2 - Blind Shadows
Pitch blackness enveloped the room, followed immediately by shrieks of terror from the guests. Marcus’s military instincts engaged without hesitation. He shifted Lily firmly into his left arm, pressing her head safely beneath his shoulder, and pivoted toward the perimeter wall.
Heavy boots pounded against the polished stone floor.
“Grab the envelope! Don’t let him reach the courtyard!” an angry voice barked through the dark. It was Victoria’s chief of security.
Marcus navigated the layout from memory. Three paces right, past the dessert buffet, toward the terrace doors. A flashlight beam slashed through the dark, catching Marcus’s profile. A heavy hand lunged for his collar.
Marcus ducked, drove his right elbow sharply backward into the attacker’s diaphragm, and swept the man’s legs out from under him. The guard crashed down hard, taking a linen-covered banquet table with him. Silverware clattered loudly in the void.
Lily let out a muffled whimper. “Daddy...”
“I’ve got you, baby. Hold tight,” Marcus whispered soothingly, keeping his breathing steady and slow.
Another beam swung toward him. Marcus reached the heavy velvet drapes flanking the glass French doors. With a single fluid kick, he broke the vintage brass lock. Night air rushed into the sweltering ballroom, carrying the scent of impending rain.
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Marcus slipped out onto the wide stone veranda. Below lay the tiered gardens and the long, sweeping private driveway where his black SUV was parked. But as he sprinted down the marble staircase toward the garden path, headlamps roared to life at the estate gates.
Two armored black sedans blocked the main exit entirely, their engines revving like predators waiting in the mist.
