Chapter 6 - THE GHOST AWAKES
Adrian didn’t reach for a weapon.
He reached for a heavy brass lamp on the console table beside him.
With a speed that defied his size, he hurled it directly at the nearest guard’s face. The brass connected with a sickening crunch. The man crumpled instantly.
In the same fluid motion, Adrian lunged across the space, grabbing the second guard by the lapels of his leather coat and using his momentum to slam the massive man backward into the wall. The drywall cracked.
Vincent swung the gun away from Allison and aimed it at Adrian.
“Stop right there!” Vincent roared.
Adrian froze.
He had one hand pinned against the second guard’s throat. He turned his head slowly to look at Vincent. The barrel of the suppressed gun was aimed squarely at Adrian’s chest.
The room plunged into a horrifying silence, broken only by Leo’s muffled sobbing into his mother’s dress.
Nora’s heart stopped. She looked at Adrian, expecting to see fear.
Instead, she saw a terrifying, hollow calm.
“Put the gun down, Vincent,” Adrian said softly.
“You arrogant bastard,” Vincent sneered. “You think because your family owns a few politicians, you’re untouchable? Your brother thought that too. Look where it got him.”
Adrian didn’t flinch at the mention of Julian. “My brother made a mistake. He trusted a rat. But you made a worse mistake tonight, Vincent.”
“Oh? And what’s that?”
“You walked into my house.”
Vincent laughed, a harsh, grating sound. “Your house? Bellweather belongs to a holding company. Mark showed me the deed.”
“Mark showed you what I wanted him to show you,” Adrian said.
Without breaking eye contact with Vincent, Adrian reached into his breast pocket with his free hand.
Vincent tensed, adjusting his grip on the gun. “Hands where I can see them, DeLuca!”
Adrian slowly pulled out a folded piece of heavy parchment.
He tossed it onto the carpet between them.
“I bought the holding company three days ago,” Adrian said, his voice echoing in the quiet room. “I own the debt. I own the mortgage. I own Bellweather House. Which means, Vincent, you are currently trespassing on my property with a loaded weapon.”
Vincent stared at the paper on the floor. For the first time, a flicker of uncertainty crossed his scarred face.
“I don’t care who owns the building,” Vincent spat. “I want the drive. And I want the money Mark owes me.”
Nora couldn’t stand it anymore.
“Mark is gone!” she yelled, stepping out from behind Adrian.
“Nora, stay back,” Adrian warned.
She ignored him, glaring at Vincent. “He ran out the back door five minutes ago. He left his pregnant wife downstairs. He left my sister holding the bag. He played you, Vincent. He’s halfway to the airport with your money.”
Vincent’s jaw locked. He looked at Allison, who was shaking violently, clutching Leo.
“Give me the bracelet,” Vincent demanded.
Allison didn’t hesitate. She threw the heavy diamond bracelet across the room. It landed near Vincent’s feet.
Vincent crouched down, keeping the gun leveled at Adrian, and picked it up. He popped the clasp, confirming the USB drive was inside.
He smiled.
“Thank you, ladies,” Vincent said. He slipped the bracelet into his pocket and stood up straight.
He aimed the gun directly at Adrian’s head.
“Now, about Julian’s debt,” Vincent whispered.
Nora screamed.
But Adrian was already moving.
He didn’t drop to the floor. He kicked the heavy oak coffee table violently forward. The solid wood caught Vincent right below the knees, shattering his stance.
The gun went off.
Phut.
The suppressed shot buried itself into the ceiling, raining plaster down on them.
Before Vincent could realign his aim, Adrian was on him.
It wasn’t a fight. It was a dismantling.
Adrian grabbed Vincent’s wrist, twisting it with a sharp, brutal motion. The gun clattered to the floor. Adrian drove his knee into Vincent’s stomach, dropping the older man to his knees, and then grabbed him by the throat, slamming him back against the floor-to-ceiling window.
The glass groaned under the impact.
Adrian leaned in close, his face inches from Vincent’s.
“You think you killed Julian?” Adrian whispered, his voice vibrating with a terrifying, primal rage. “Julian drove his car off that cliff because he was trying to protect my family from the poison you dragged into our lives. You didn’t kill him. You just forced me to take his place.”
Adrian reached into Vincent’s coat pocket.
He bypassed the diamond bracelet.
He pulled out the tarnished silver rosary.
Adrian wrapped the beads around his own fist, holding them tight.
“If you ever come near my family, my businesses, or this woman again,” Adrian said, his voice deadly quiet, “I won’t bother with the police. I will erase you.”
He shoved Vincent away in disgust.
Vincent scrambled backward, gasping for air, clutching his throat. He looked at his two unconscious guards on the floor, then at Adrian, who stood towering over him, holding the silver cross.
Vincent didn’t say a word. He scrambled to his feet and stumbled out of the suite, abandoning his men.
The heavy door swung shut behind him.
Silence descended on the room.
Nora let out a jagged breath, her legs suddenly giving way. She dropped to her knees on the carpet, pressing her hands to her face.
Allison was sobbing loudly in the corner, clutching Leo, who was burying his face in his mother’s neck.
Adrian stood perfectly still by the window for a long moment, staring at the silver rosary in his hand. He closed his eyes, his broad chest rising and falling heavily.
Slowly, the lethal predator vanished, replaced once again by the quiet, measured man Nora knew.
He walked over to where the diamond bracelet had fallen from Vincent’s pocket during the struggle. He picked it up.
Then, he walked over to Nora.
He knelt down in front of her, the charcoal fabric of his bespoke suit pulling tight across his shoulders.
He gently took her hands away from her face.
“Look at me,” he said softly.
Nora opened her eyes. Tears were spilling down her cheeks.
“Are you hurt?” he asked.
She shook her head. “No.”
Adrian nodded. He pressed the diamond bracelet into her palm and closed her fingers over it.
“The drive is still inside,” Adrian said. “Your parents’ money is safe. We will wire it back into their accounts tomorrow morning. Mark won’t get a dime.”
Nora looked down at the diamonds. Then she looked up at Allison, who was staring at them with absolute shame.
“What about Mark?” Nora whispered.
May you like
Adrian’s eyes darkened slightly.
“My men intercepted Mark in the parking lot five minutes ago,” Adrian said calmly. “He did not make it to the airport. And he never will.”
