“Get inside!” Andreas shouts as he pushes me back towards the house before firing towards the enemy.
I shut my eyes and cover my ears as the gunshots become deafening.
When I open them again, I watch Lucian dive behind the hood of a vehicle, his weapon spitting fire. Bullets whistle overhead—a high-pitchedzipthat makes my blood run cold. Damiano moves a few steps away from me with terrifying precision. I see the enemy guards go down, one after another.
“Damiano!” I scream, but the chaos swallows the sound.
Just then, I see Gio take a hit to the shoulder, his body jerking back as blood sprays against the stone. Damiano roars an animalistic sound—and charges forward to cover him, completely exposing himself to the line of fire.
Then I see the red laser dots—dozens of them—converging on his chest and back like lethal fireflies.
My world slows.
The sound of the gunfire thins into a low, underwater thrum. I see the light hitting the sweat on Damiano’s neck. I see the way his chest heaves, his finger pulling back on the trigger for a shot that will surely be his last.
So I run.
I shove past Andreas, my legs moving with a frantic, uncoordinated desperation. I sprint into the center of the crossfire, where the light is the brightest. I throw my body into the path of Damiano, my arms outstretched like a broken cross.
“STOP!”
The scream tears from my throat, raw and vibrating with a panic so deep it doesn’t sound like me. “STOP IT! DON’T SHOOT HIM!”
In that heartbeat, every sound falters.
Flavio turns his head towards me, a silhouette of torn silk and blood, glowing in the center of the headlights.
I turn to look at Damiano, and in slow motion, his head turns to me.
I see the moment the fight dies in his eyes. His lethal focus shatters, replaced by a devastating, naked terror. His mouth opens—my name forming on his lips—but the sound is trapped in the vacuum of the moment.
He looks at me, reaching out with a hand caked in blood, his fingers splayed as if he can catch the bullets meant for me.
The gunfire stutters into an eerie, ringing silence. Only the heavy panting of men and the sound of the engines running remain.
I stand there, hands up in surrender, trembling, looking atmy cousin.
“I’ll go with you. Just—don’t hurt him. Any of them!” I say, trying to raise my chin despite my body trembling in fear.
“Katarina,non farlo!” Damiano’s voice is a wreck as he screams for me to stop as Andreas holds him back, ten feet behind me, gun lowered, chest heaving.
“I’ll go,” I say, my voice trembling as I negotiate with Flavio. “I’ll come to the car. Just tell everyone to lower the guns.”
Flavio stares at me for a heartbeat, his eyes narrowing, before nodding.
The lasers vanish, and I sigh in relief.
He stares at me expectantly, so I start to walk shakily, my bare feet struggling to find balance on the rocks. Every step feels like I’m wading through deep water.
When I turn to look at Lucian, he looks away, his face twisted in shame. So I look back at Andreas, who nods at me with a grim promise.
“NO!” Damiano tries to free himself from his friend’s grasp, but Lucian is there in a second, pinning him down to the ground.
“Lasciami andare!” Damiano’s screams cut through my chest, and my steps falter. A sob retches out of my mouth as I watch the man I love get tackled to the ground.
Just then, two guards appear at my side and hustle me towards the SUV.
“Don’t hurt him!” I shriek, my voice cracking as I twist my head back, desperate to see Damiano. “Lucian! Andreas!Per favore, get him out of here!”
