Chapter Four: Blood and Protection
614 Words
The atmosphere inside the mansion turned deadly within seconds.
Guards rushed across the marble floors, loading weapons while alarms echoed faintly through the halls.
Elena Carter stood frozen in fear.
This was real.
Not a movie.
Not a nightmare.
A real mafia war.
Damiano Russo remained terrifyingly calm through the chaos.
“Seal the gates,” he ordered coldly.
“Already done, boss,” one guard answered quickly.
Another gunshot exploded outside.
Elena flinched violently.
Damiano’s eyes shifted toward her instantly.
“Take her upstairs.”
“I’m not leaving!” Elena protested.
Matteo laughed softly nearby. “Trust me, princess, you do not want front row seats for this.”
But Elena ignored him, staring directly at Damiano.
“This is because of me, isn’t it?”
Silence.
That silence gave her the answer.
Fear tightened painfully in her chest.
The Moretti family came because they discovered there was a witness.
Because of her.
Damiano stepped toward her slowly.
“No one touches what belongs to me.”
Elena’s breath caught.
Belongs to me?
Before she could react, loud explosions suddenly shook the mansion walls.
Glass shattered somewhere downstairs.
Vittoria cursed sharply.
“They’re inside.”
Everything happened too fast after that.
Guards rushed forward.
More gunshots erupted.
The mansion exploded into chaos.
Elena gasped as Damiano grabbed her wrist immediately.
“Stay close to me.”
“I—”
Another gunshot interrupted her.
Damiano suddenly pulled Elena against his chest as bullets shattered the wall behind them.
She screamed softly, fingers clutching his shirt instinctively.
The smell of smoke filled the air.
Her body trembled uncontrollably.
This was madness.
Pure madness.
But through all the chaos…
Damiano never loosened his grip on her.
Not even once.
“Move!” he barked at his men.
The guards surrounded them quickly as Damiano guided Elena through the mansion hallway.
Her legs felt weak.
Gunshots echoed everywhere.
One of the guards suddenly fell beside them, blood spreading across the floor.
Elena nearly cried out.
Damiano immediately covered her eyes with one hand.
“Don’t look.”
The strange protectiveness in his voice shocked her.
Why did he care?
A loud crash echoed ahead.
Then men dressed in black stormed into the hallway.
Moretti soldiers.
Everything stopped.
The leader smirked dangerously when he saw Elena beside Damiano.
“Well,” he drawled slowly. “Looks like the rumors were true.”
Damiano’s expression darkened instantly.
“You have five seconds to leave.”
The man laughed.
“And let the famous Damiano Russo keep his new obsession?”
Elena felt Damiano’s entire body tense beside her.
Dangerous.
Deadly.
Possessive.
The man’s eyes shifted toward Elena greedily.
“She’s pretty. I can see why—”
Bang.
The gunshot deafened the hallway.
The Moretti soldier collapsed instantly.
Dead.
Elena’s entire body froze.
Damiano lowered the gun slowly, smoke rising from the barrel.
Cold dark eyes filled with murder.
“No one looks at her,” he said quietly.
The hallway fell silent.
Even the guards looked nervous now.
Because this wasn’t normal.
This wasn’t business.
This was obsession beginning to grow into something terrifying.
Damiano turned toward Elena slowly.
Blood stained part of his white shirt.
His jaw tightened when he noticed her shaking.
Then unexpectedly—
his fingers brushed gently against her cheek.
“You’re safe,” he murmured.
The softness in his voice confused Elena more than the violence around them.
How could someone so cruel sound so protective?
Another explosion shook the mansion.
Damiano’s gaze hardened instantly again.
“We’re leaving.”
“What?” Elena whispered shakily.
He grabbed her hand firmly.
“Because now they know exactly who you are.”
- Writer
