BLOOD ON MARBLE
661 Words
The night exploded.
Sofia barely had time to register the sound before Alessio moved.
Gunfire shattered the stillness, sharp and deafening, slicing through the marble halls like glass. The chandelier above them swayed violently as bullets struck stone.
“Down!”
Alessio’s arm wrapped around Sofia’s waist and yanked her hard against his chest. She gasped as he spun, shielding her with his body, dragging her behind a thick stone pillar just as another shot rang out.
Her heart slammed so hard she thought she might pass out.
“Stay. Here,” he ordered, voice iron-hard.
“I’m not leaving you!” she cried.
He looked down at her—really looked—and something feral crossed his face.
“Do not argue with me now.”
More shots.
Guards flooded the hall, returning fire with brutal efficiency. Shouts echoed. Someone screamed.
Sofia clutched Alessio’s jacket, her fingers slick with something warm.
Blood.
Her breath caught. “You’re hit—”
“It’s nothing,” he snapped.
It clearly wasn’t.
He staggered slightly but didn’t release her until he shoved her behind the pillar again.
“Do not move,” he said. “If you move, I will kill you myself.”
Her eyes widened.
He didn’t soften it.
That was how serious he was.
Alessio stepped out from cover, gun raised, firing with lethal precision. One body hit the floor. Then another.
The attack was over as quickly as it had begun.
Silence fell—broken only by labored breathing and the ringing in Sofia’s ears.
She ran to him.
“Alessio!”
He was leaning against the wall now, jaw clenched, blood staining his white shirt near his ribs.
“You’re bleeding,” she whispered, panic flooding her voice.
He waved off the guards. “Clear the area. Now.”
They obeyed instantly.
When they were alone, his knees buckled.
Sofia caught him.
The weight of him nearly dragged her down, but she held on, fear lending her strength.
“You’re not allowed to die,” she said shakily. “Not yet.”
A corner of his mouth twitched. “Bossy.”
She pressed her hands against his wound. “Sit. Before you bleed out on your ridiculous marble floor.”
He allowed her to guide him into a nearby room.
Allowed.
That alone scared her.
She tore fabric to press against his side, her hands trembling.
“Who did this?” she demanded.
Alessio’s eyes darkened. “Someone very desperate.”
“Lucia?” Sofia asked quietly.
His silence was answer enough.
Rage sparked inside her. “She set you up.”
“No,” he said, breathing shallow. “She opened the door.”
Sofia swallowed. “And I was the target.”
He looked at her sharply.
“Yes.
Her chest tightened painfully.
“You stepped in front of the bullets for me.”
“I would do it again.”
The certainty in his voice stole her breath.
She met his gaze. “Why?”
For a moment, Alessio looked… human.
Tired.
Exposed.
“Because if they touch you,” he said quietly, “I will burn this city to the ground.”
Her pulse skipped.
She had never heard a promise so terrifying.
Or so absolute.
She finished bandaging him, her fingers brushing his skin, aware of every breath, every inch between them.
When she stepped back, he caught her wrist gently.
Not controlling.
Grounding.
“You did well,” he said.
She laughed weakly. “I almost fainted.”
“But you didn’t,” he replied. “You stayed.”
Their eyes locked.
Something shifted.
Dangerous.
Intimate.
Unstoppable.
Footsteps echoed outside.
Alessio released her and straightened, the don snapping back into place.
“This changes everything,” he said coldly.
Sofia nodded.
“Yes,” she agreed.
Because now she understood the truth.
This marriage wasn’t just revenge anymore.
It was war.
And she was standing beside the most dangerous man in it.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD