Chapter 9 - The empire's shadow
The steel door groaned and warped under a second brutal strike. Bennett pushed Clara toward the tall window, his eyes blazing with a fierce, uncompromising command. "Go. Now."
Clara climbed onto the heavy windowsill, the cool night air whipping her soft dark-brown hair around her face. She stepped onto the sturdy iron trellis just as the security door gave way with a deafening crash.
Marcus stepped into the room, flanked by his men. He looked victorious, a smug smile on his face. But Bennett simply stood in the center of the room, his hands casually resting in the pockets of his tailored trousers, perfectly calm.
"It's over, Bennett," Marcus sneered.
"Check your phone, Marcus," Bennett replied softly.
Marcus frowned. One of his guards pulled out a buzzing phone, his face draining of color. The guard whispered frantically to Marcus. The heads of the five families had received the ledgers. They had put a massive, multi-million dollar bounty on Marcus's head for stealing from the syndicate's communal pension fund.
In an instant, the loyalty in the room fractured. Marcus’s own men slowly raised their weapons, not at Bennett, but at Marcus. The betrayal was absolute and bloodless. Marcus dropped to his knees, realizing his empire of lies had just crushed him.
Clara watched from the trellis, her breath catching in her throat as Bennett walked past the kneeling traitor without a second glance. He walked to the window, extending his strong, tattooed hand to help her back inside.
The siege was over just as quickly as it had begun. The mansion fell quiet once more, the only sound the distant wail of police sirens. Bennett held Clara close, his heart beating steadily against hers.
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But their victory was violently cut short when David rushed into the room, his face pale and stricken with grief.
"Bennett," David breathed heavily. "It's your mother. You need to come now."
