I guide Hannah to my SUV, keeping one hand on her at all times. She's shaking now, the adrenaline wearing off, shock setting in.I need to get her home. Somewhere I can verify that she and the baby are truly unharmed.
Alexei appears as I'm helping Hannah into the backseat, his face gray beneath the blood. "Boss, I need to?—"
"You need medical attention," I interrupt. "Andre will take you. Call me when you're clear."
He nods, swaying slightly. "I'm sorry. I should have seen it coming."
"You kept her alive. That's all that matters."
After he's gone, I slide into the backseat beside Hannah and pull her against me. She comes without resistance, curling into my side like she belongs there. Like she's always belonged there.
The ride back to the estate is silent except for the hum of the engine and Hannah's ragged breathing as she fights to calm herself. I keep her hand locked in mine, my thumb tracing patterns on her wrist where her pulse beats too fast.
No music. No questions. Only silence.
"Dante," she finally whispers. "Your cousin?—"
"Don't." I press my lips to her hair. "Not now. Right now, you're safe. That's all that matters."
"But—"
"Hannah." I lift her chin, making her look at me. "They came after what's mine. My cousin, my uncle, everyone involved in this—they tried to take you from me."
"What are you going to do?"
The question hangs in the air between us. She knows what I am, what I'm capable of. She's seen the violence firsthand now. She has blood on her hands from defending herself.
She's asking if she can live with what comes next.
"I'm going to burn their whole world down," I say quietly. "Everyone who touched you, everyone who threatened our child, everyone who thought they could use you against me—they're all going to pay."
I expect her to flinch or to pull away. I wait for her to remind me that she doesn't want this life. Instead, she nods slowly and snuggles closer.
"Good," she says, and the steel in her voice surprises me. "They tried to kill our baby."
Our baby. The first time she's said it out loud, acknowledging the life we createdtogether. The life she fought to protect today.
"Nothing is going to hurt you or our child," I promise. "Not Bogdan, not Radimir, not anyone. I'll tear down the entire organization if that's what it takes to keep you safe."
"I know." She leans her head against my shoulder, exhausted. "I'm sorry I tried to leave."
"Don't apologize." I tighten my arms around her. "You were right. About the cage, about the control. I was so afraid of losing you that I was suffocating us both."
"And now?"
"Now I'm going to protect you the right way. By eliminating the threats, not by locking you away from them."
She's quiet for a long time. "That's going to mean war, isn't it? With your family."
"Yes."
"Can we win?"
I think about the proof we have. Ivan's confession, the coordination of the attack and the pattern of evidence against Richard Quinn that now makes terrible sense. Bogdan has been playing a long game, setting up Richard as a fall guy while positioning himself to take my place with Radimir's backing.
I trusted him. I loved him.
And he fucked me over.
