Chapter 2 - Crossfire in the Clouds
Lorenzo’s expression didn’t panic; it hardened into something lethal. The whiskey eyes locked onto Nina, then down to the massive dog still pressed against her side like armor.
"It seems," Lorenzo said softly, drawing the heavy silencer from his belt, "your pet brought unwanted company."
"They're after him?" Nina asked, her heart hammering against her ribs.
"They sold him to me," Lorenzo replied, checking the magazine of his weapon with practiced efficiency. "Or rather, they stole him, flipped him through three different syndicates, and tried to charge me a king's ransom. They didn't expect me to keep him alive. They thought he'd die in the pits."
"I'm not leaving him," Nina said instantly, scrambling to her feet, though Ghost—or Grimm, as the crime lord called him—stayed glued to her heels, his low growl vibrating through the floorboards.
"You aren't given a choice, girl. The elevators are locked down. My men are stationed at the stairwells, but Rostov’s crew brought explosives." Lorenzo gestured sharply to the housekeeper, who was already scurrying toward a hidden panic room behind a mahogany bookshelf. "Maria, take her."
"No!" Nina pulled away, her mind racing back to her brother's empty medicine cabinet, the eviction notice, and now, the impossible return of the only piece of her family she had left. "You want to survive this? You need this dog. He trusts me. If you want to clear that hallway, you let me handle the beast, and I’ll help you hold the line."
May you like
Lorenzo stared at her, assessing the wild, desperate defiance burning in her eyes. Most people wept, begged, or wet themselves when his world crashed into theirs. This girl—in a cheap black catering uniform—was offering to go to war over a scarred pit bull.
A deafening explosion rocked the penthouse. The heavy double doors at the private elevator lobby blew inward, sending a shockwave of smoke, splinters, and shattered glass across the marble.
