Chapter 5 - FAMILY IS A WEAKNESS
Emergency lights turned the hallway red.
Stellan was on his feet instantly.
“Dominic.”
“Generator’s dead.”
“How?”
“Sabotage.”
Fern started crying upstairs.
I ran.
“Selene!”
Nothing Stellan said could have stopped me.
I flew up the stairs.
Two guards rushed past.
Another shouted from the foyer.
Glass shattered somewhere outside.
Fern screamed.
I reached the guest room.
The door was open.
My blood turned to ice.
“Fern?”
The crib was empty.
For one second, the whole world disappeared.
Then I heard a tiny cough.
From the closet.
I ripped it open.
Mrs. Thornbury sat on the floor holding Fern against her chest.
The older woman’s usually perfect gray hair had fallen loose.
“Take her.”
I grabbed my daughter.
“What happened?”
“A man entered through the terrace.”
“What man?”
“He wore staff clothes.”
A shadow moved behind us.
Mrs. Thornbury screamed.
I spun.
A man rushed through the doorway.
He had a knife.
I didn’t think.
I grabbed the nearest thing—a brass lamp—and swung.
It hit his shoulder.
He cursed.
I swung again.
This time the lamp connected with his face.
He staggered.
Then Stellan appeared.
The fight lasted maybe six seconds.
It felt like six years.
Stellan slammed the intruder into the wall, knocked the knife away, and drove him to the floor.
His men arrived.
“Alive,” Stellan snapped.
They dragged the attacker out.
Then Stellan turned.
His face changed when he saw Fern in my arms.
He crossed the room.
“Is she hurt?”
“No.”
His hands moved over her arms, legs, head.
Checking.
Fern reached for him.
I let her go.
He held her.
His forehead lowered against her hair.
For a moment, he wasn’t a mafia boss.
He was just a father who had almost lost his child ten minutes after finding out she was his.
Then he looked at me.
“We leave tonight.”
“Where?”
“A safe house.”
“No.”
“Selene.”
“No more orders.”
His jaw tightened.
“My home was breached.”
“And your solution is to take us deeper into your world?”
“My solution is keeping her alive.”
“So is mine!”
We stood inches apart.
Fern between us.
That stopped both of us from shouting.
Stellan lowered his voice.
“Marek knows.”
“How?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then maybe the leak is inside your house.”
His eyes went still.
I saw it hit him.
“You think one of your people told him.”
“Yes.”
Behind us, Mrs. Thornbury made a sound.
We turned.
She looked terrified.
Not because of the attack.
Because of something else.
“Mrs. Thornbury?” I said.
She stared at the floor.
Stellan noticed too.
“What do you know?”
“Nothing, sir.”
“That was not a request.”
Her face broke.
“I’m sorry.”
Stellan handed Fern back to me.
“For what?”
Mrs. Thornbury began to cry.
In three months, I had never seen that woman show anything stronger than disapproval.
“They have my grandson.”
Silence.
Stellan’s voice became deadly quiet.
“Who?”
“I don’t know. They called two weeks ago. They knew where he goes to school.”
“What did they ask you to do?”
She covered her mouth.
“I gave them the staff schedule.”
Stellan took one step toward her.
I moved in front of him.
“No.”
His eyes cut to mine.
“She endangered our daughter.”
“They threatened her family.”
“That does not excuse—”
“Yes, it does!”
He stopped.
I lowered my voice.
“If somebody had Fern, what would you do?”
His face changed.
We both knew the answer.
Anything.
Mrs. Thornbury sobbed.
“I’m sorry.”
Stellan stared at her.
Then said, “Get me everything. Every number. Every message.”
She looked up.
“You won’t punish me?”
“No.”
She nearly collapsed.
Stellan turned to Dominic.
“Find the boy.”
Dominic nodded.
Then his phone rang.
He answered.
Listened.
His face drained.
“What?”
Dominic looked at Stellan.
“Erik Sloan is dead.”
Stellan went still.
“How?”
May you like
Dominic swallowed.
“Someone killed him inside this house.”
