CHAPTER 26
THE AMBUSH The attack on the Romano estate came at dawn. Bella was awake, curled up in Dante's bed with a book, when the first explosions rocked the mansion. She shot upright, her heart hammering, as alarms blared throughout the compound and the sound of automatic gunfire echoed from somewhere below. Dante burst through the door seconds later, already dressed in tactical gear, a gun in each hand. His face was grim, his eyes hard as flint. "Benedetti," he said, his voice clipped. "He's hitting the estate. We need to move. Now." Bella scrambled out of bed, pulling on the clothes Dante had laid out for her—black pants, a dark sweater, combat boots. Her mother's pearl-handled gun was already tucked into a holster at her hip, a gift from Dante that suddenly felt less symbolic and more ess
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