He took out his phone and ordered all the guards to march in right before I rushed Emilia to the medical wing. The doctor was shocked to see me, and the nurses screamed.
“Quick! Take her! She was shot.” The nurses carried her until she lay on the bed. I heard the rapid gunshots, and all eyes looked at me as though I had the answer they were looking for.
“Stand clear.” The doctor said. He took off her shirt, and it was obvious the shot had penetrated her back. It was so damn painful to watch.
“Will she be okay?”
“Yes. But it's going to take some time.”
“Like how long?”
The doctor looked at the wall clock and back at my face again.
“As long as it takes.”
I walked out on them when they began to operate on her. I checked the bullets in my gun. It was half-filled. But the moment I walked outside the mansion, the war was all over. My guards had killed every rival. Their cars were empty, the street was as peaceful as it was before the chaos started, and my mind was enraged because of all the bad things to happened, I was struck with the worst, the one that broke me the most.
**************
I ordered that the bodies of the dead men be buried. Dimitri knew the right place, so I put him in charge of the job. The cleaners swept up the shattered glass and bullets from the floor, and renovations started immediately.
My phone rang. It was one of my long-time partners in business who reached me, and I wanted to cut the call instead of answer it, but I picked it up instead.
“Jon McDonald,” I said, and he laughed when he heard me call his name.
“Viktor Lobanov. The king himself. It's been a while since we've been in touch.”
“Of course. And I know you didn't call to tell me you missed me.”
“No.” He stressed. “I have a very good deal for you, so, if you don't mind, I'd like us to meet later in the day.”
“I'm quite occupied. My hands are full.”
“Trust me, Viktor, you'd rather have your hands full of money than full of work.”
He made a very good point, but I didn't know if I really wanted to leave the mansion. Not because I felt unsafe, but because of Emilia. I had to keep her safe. I needed to.
“What's the location?”
“Same place as the last time, 6:30 pm.”
“No. I'll meet you at 8 pm. And don't keep me waiting.”
“You're the boss,” Jon replied, and I ended the call.
The hours ticked by slowly, and I walked in to see Emilia with an oxygen mask. Her eyes were still closed, and I hoped that when I touched her, she'd wake up. But she didn't.
“She's going to be okay, Boss.” The doctor said, and I took his word for it. If she wasn't going to be okay, I knew I'd take his life and replace him with someone else who'd make sure she was okay.
I sat down beside her and gave her head a light brush with my hand.
“Please, wake up,” I prayed. “I want to see your eyes.”
Her hand was covered with a cannula. The drip passed down the tiny tube into her body, and I could only imaginethe pain she felt. The previous night was enough horror on its own. This morning was something entirely different. Whoever did this only wanted to hurt me by taking out what I valued the most. But I wasn't going to give up. So I promised to stand my ground again and fight to my last breath. Every rival who stood to oppose me wouldn't live to see the light of day, and the ones who'd escape from my wrath would only live in hell because I'd hunt them down, kill them, then feed their bodies to the hyenas.
All this happened to Emilia because of me. I couldn't blame anyone else but me. I didn't protect her enough. She'd say that I was amazing, but I didn't do enough. I promised to keep her safe, and she was shot because of my carelessness. I didn't live up to my promise to her. But never again would I let such a thing happen.
The time on the wall was 7:00 pm, and I knew I needed to strike a good deal with Jon McDonald. Jon wasn't just an ordinary business tycoon. He was a dog. A made man of his clan who knew how to move both arsenals and drugs around without getting caught or questioned. He had served in the army for a period of 20 years, and right before he left, he was the man for every illegal deal. The great part of it was that he never got caught. They've tried to snitch on him, but to no avail. Investigations were carried out to bring him down by the city's best detectives, and charges were filed against him in the Supreme Court. Jon McDonald was the real deal, and business with him was safe, secure, and reliable.
