My men are barking orders, the Brotherhood line holding, but the vantage point is shit. We’re fish in a fucking barrel.
"Rafael, your arm—" Gia gasps, her hands clutching my shirt. She’s hyperventilating, her face a mask of pure, unadulterated terror.
"I’m fine. Just stay down."
I peek over the hood, trying to spot the muzzle flash. There. Second floor of the warehouse across the street. A shooter is repositioning, the long barrel of a Remington 700 poking through a broken pane of glass. He’s looking for a leader. He’s looking for me.
But he sees her.
I see the moment the barrel shifts. It’s not aiming for my head; it’s aiming for the gap between the door and the frame where Gia is huddled. He’s going for the heart. Her heart.
No. Not fucking her.
I don't think. There’s no time for tactical maneuvers or calculated risks. There is only the girl.
As the shooter pulls the trigger, I throw myself over her. I wrap my body around hers, pinning her against the tire, making myself a shield of meat and bone.
Thwack.
It feels like being hit by a sledgehammer made of white-hot iron. The impact slams into my left shoulder, the force of it jerking my entire body. A guttural growl rips out of my throat, my teeth grinding together so hard I think they might shatter.
"Rafael!"
Gia’s scream is muffled against my chest. I can feel the warmth of my own blood immediately soaking through my shirt, spilling onto her skin, staining the white fabric of her dress.
Fucking hell. That bites.
"Stay... stay down," I wheeze. The pain is a blinding, jagged white light behind my eyes. I don't let go. I tighten my grip, shielding her head with my good arm.
"You’re hit! Oh my god, you’re bleeding, Rafael!" Her voice is high, panicked, her hands fluttering against my chest.
"I’m fine, Gia. I need you to breathe."
I look up, my vision blurring at the edges, but the adrenaline is a goddamn tidal wave. I see Luca and the driver charging the warehouse, laying down a wall of suppressive fire.
"Vantage point, two o'clock!" I roar, the sound tearing through the smoke, though my voice cracks halfway through. "Luca! Take the motherfucker out!"
I stay over her. I don't move an inch. Another round strikes the SUV above us, showering us in glass shards, but I don't flinch. I am a goddamn wall. Nothing touches her. Not today. Not fucking ever.
A moment later, a loud explosion rocks the building across the street as my men find their mark. The heavy fire from the treeline begins to wither as the Brotherhood counter-assault gains ground.
The sound of gunfire begins to fade into the distance, replaced by the ringing in my ears.
"Boss! Boss, we’re clear!" Luca’s voice sounds like it’s coming from the bottom of a well.
I try to shift, to pull back, but my left arm feels like it’s been replaced by a block of molten lead. I stagger back, my knees hitting the gravel. The world tilts on its axis, the grey concrete swirling into the blue sky.
"Rafael!" Gia is on her knees beside me, her hands reaching out to steady me.
I look down at my shoulder. The blood is dark, thick, and moving way too fucking fast. I try to lift my hand to press against the wound, but my fingers won't cooperate.
"Luca..." I gasp, my head lolling back against the SUV. "Get... get the perimeter secured. Check the... the east gate."
"Boss, you need to sit still," Luca says, his face appearing over me, tight with worry.
"Did you hear me?" I snap, but it comes out as a wet whisper. My chest feels heavy, every breath a goddamn mountain to climb. "Secure the area. No one... no one gets in."
The adrenaline is leaving me now, taking my strength with it. I can feel the coldness creeping into my limbs, the light at the edges of my vision starting to flicker and dim.
