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HE SAW THE BRUISE SHE TRIED TO HIDE—AND THE WHOLE EMPIRE KNEW CHASE WAS A DEAD MAN WALKING! / Chapter 9 / 10

Chapter 9 - "YOU WILL NEVER RUN FROM ME AGAIN." KATARINA CONFRONTS HER FEARS AND SAVES THE MAN WHO SAVED HER!

Screams echoed through the darkness of the grand ballroom.

"Katarina, stay down!" Vittorio roared, his voice cutting through the panic.

He pulled her behind a heavy marble pillar, drawing his pistol in a single, fluid motion. But before he could locate the threat, a bright searchlight clicked on from the balcony above, illuminating the space where they stood.

Dominic Marcone stood on the balcony, a semi-automatic rifle pointed directly at Vittorio’s chest.

"It's over, Servino!" Dominic yelled, his voice manic. "The truce is dead! Your empire ends tonight!"

Vittorio pushed Katarina behind him, preparing to take the hit to protect her. "Run, Katarina! Get to Enzo!"

But Katarina didn't run. She looked at the floor, where a heavy brass stanchion—used to hold the velvet ropes—was resting.

With a surge of strength she didn't know she possessed, Katarina grabbed the heavy brass pole and swung it with all her might, smashing it against the control panel of the ballroom’s main generator, which was mounted on the pillar beside them.

The impact sent a massive shower of blue sparks into the air, instantly overloading the emergency backup lights and plunging the ballroom back into absolute, pitch-black darkness.

RAT-TAT-TAT-TAT!

Dominic’s rifle fired blindly into the dark, the bullets tearing through the plaster of the ceiling, but missing Vittorio completely.

Using the distraction, Vittorio moved like a shadow. He sprinted up the service stairs to the balcony, his footsteps silent.

Two quick shots echoed through the darkness.

"Ahhh!" Dominic screamed, his rifle clattering to the floor as he fell over the balcony railing, crashing into a table below.

The lights flickered back on, revealing the chaotic scene. Servino’s soldiers had already disarmed the remaining Marcone guards, and Enzo stood over Silvio Marcone, a pistol pressed to the old Don’s temple.

Vittorio walked down the stairs, his tuxedo slightly dusty but otherwise unscathed. He walked straight to Katarina, who was standing beside the shattered generator, her hands shaking but her eyes bright with a fierce, adrenaline-driven survival instinct.

"You saved my life, Katarina," Vittorio said, his voice filled with a profound, breathless wonder.

"I told you, Vittorio," she said, her voice trembling but proud. "I am no longer the girl who hides in the corner."

Enzo dragged Silvio Marcone to the center of the room, throwing him at Vittorio’s feet.

"What do we do with him, Don Vittorio?" Enzo asked.

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The ambulance siren wailed in the distance, a rising shriek that cut through the rainy night like a knife. I didn't wait for them. I held Arianne against my chest, feeling the terrifyingly erratic rhythm of her pulse, and bolted down the grand mahogany staircase.

The ambulance siren wailed in the distance, a rising shriek that cut thr...

The heavy cabin door hissed shut behind me, sealing in the scent of expensive cologne, manufactured corporate harmony, and betrayal. As I stepped back onto the sun-baked tarmac of the private aviation terminal, the stifling afternoon heat hit me like a physical blow. Behind the thick, tinted glass of the jet's windows, I could see Carter’s silhouette—his jaw set in that familiar, arrogant angle of a man who believed he had just successfully disciplined a disobedient pet.

The heavy cabin door hissed shut behind me, sealing in the scent of expe...

Vittorio looked down at the old man, his eyes colder than ice. "The Marcone family is finished in this city. Strip them of their assets, deport their captains, and let them know that if they ever touch a single hair on Katarina's head again, I will personally ensure their name is erased from history."

He turned back to Katarina, offering his hand. "Come, Katarina. It is time for the truth."

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