Chapter 6
Down in the subterranean panic vault—a fortified bunker built twelve feet beneath the estate's foundation with reinforced steel walls and independent air filtration—Clara sat on a plush leather armchair. She held her white plush bunny tightly against her pale-yellow floral dress, her small yellow boots dangling above the floorboards.
The heavy steel door of the vault unlocked with a loud pneumatic hiss.
Adrian walked into the room. His black dress shirt was slightly rumpled, a light smudge of gunpowder on his sleeve, but his posture remained tall, broad, and untouchably powerful.
The moment Clara saw him, her big brown eyes lit up with profound relief. She scrambled off the leather chair, running across the room on her small feet, and wrapped her arms tightly around his leg.
Adrian stopped in his tracks, surprise softening his sharp jawline. He dropped to one knee, wrapping his large, tattooed arm gently around her small shoulders, bringing her close against his chest.
"Are you alright, little one?" Adrian asked softly, his deep voice rich with gentle warmth.
"I knew you would come back," Clara whispered, her delicate face resting against his black shirt. "I heard the loud noises upstairs, but I wasn't scared because I knew Chicago’s Black Dragon was protecting me."
Adrian let out a quiet, raspy chuckle—a sound so rare that Marco, standing near the vault door, blinked in disbelief. Adrian reached up, gently wiping a smudge of dust from her rosy cheek.
"The bad men are gone, Clara," Adrian promised. "Your contract is safe."
"Did you catch the man with the scratched shoe?" she asked innocently.
"He ran away," Adrian admitted honestly. "But he’s running straight back to his boss at Pier 42. And that is where we are going to find your mother."
Clara looked into his piercing dark eyes, her small lips trembling slightly as emotion finally broke through her brave composure. "Is my mom... is she still okay?"
Adrian reached out his calloused thumb, gently smoothing the pale-yellow ribbon in her golden-blonde hair. He looked into her eyes with an absolute, unshakeable sincerity that no money in the world could buy.
"I gave you my word, Clara," Adrian said, his deep voice ringing like an oath. "I don't break contracts. I am going to bring your mother home to you tonight."
Clara nodded slowly, wiping a tiny tear from her brown eyes, and pressed her plush bunny against his chest. "I believe you, Mr. Moretti."
Adrian stood up, turning to Marco. "Keep Clara in the vault with Team Alpha. Double the guards on the subterranean perimeter. Marco, you and Team Vanguard are coming with me to Pier 42."
May you like
"Boss," Marco said, his rugged face tight with loyalty. "Sterling knows we decrypted the memory card. He’s going to have Pier 42 rigged like a war zone."
"Good," Adrian replied, his dark eyes narrowing into razor-sharp slits of pure, lethal resolve. "Then we'll give him a war he won't survive."
