Chapter 7 - The Trap in the DarkThe ride back to the estate was silent, save for the hum of the engine and the heavy rain drumming against the bulletproof windows of Dante’s town car.
Dante sat beside me in the back seat, staring straight ahead, his jaw clenched so tightly a muscle ticked in his cheek.
“You shouldn't have brought me out tonight,” I finally broke the silence, keeping my eyes on the blurred neon lights of Baltimore flashing outside. “You made yourself a target by defending me in front of Moretti.”
Dante turned his head, looking at me in the dim light of the dashboard. “Nobody makes a target of what belongs to me, Rosie. Get that through your head.”
“I don’t belong to anyone, Dante,” I snapped, turning to face him. “Not the veterinary board, not Julian Vance, and not you.”
Before Dante could answer, the town car violently swerved.
Driver side tires shrieked against the wet asphalt as a massive black SUV slammed directly into our rear bumper. The impact threw me sideways across the leather seat.
“Ambush!” the driver yelled, slamming his foot on the gas.
Two more vehicles flanked us on either side, boxing us in on the desolate coastal highway leading back to the Vescari estate. Gunfire cracked through the rain, shattering the rear window. Shards of glass rained down over us.
Dante didn't panic. In a heartbeat, he shoved me down onto the floorboards of the car, covering my body with his own heavy frame.
“Stay down!” Dante roared over the deafening sound of automatic gunfire ripping through the car’s metal doors.
I clutched his coat, feeling the warm, sticky wetness spreading against my palm.
May you like
“Dante—you’re bleeding!” I screamed over the roar of the engines.
“It’s nothing,” he gritted out, pulling a heavy-calibrated pistol from his holster with his free hand. “Hold on to me, Rosie. Whatever happens... do not let go.”
