Chapter 7 - The Inferno on 4th Street
Panic erupted in a fraction of a second.
"Front door!" Pavel shouted, grabbing the delivery kid by the collar and throwing him out onto the sidewalk just as Anton tackled Tess behind the heavy, stainless-steel prep counter in the kitchen.
3... 2... 1...
The explosion tore through Frankie’s Diner with devastating force.
The shockwave blew out the newly installed bulletproof windows, hurling shattered glass and wooden booths into the street. The roof collapsed near the entrance, showering the interior in plaster, dust, and burning debris. Flames erupted instantly as gas lines ruptured near the grill.
Tess was slammed violently against the floor, her ears ringing with a deafening, high-pitched screech. Dust filled her lungs, making her cough frantically as dark smoke curled around her.
"Tess! Tess, can you hear me?!" Anton’s deep voice bellowed through the haze. He was lying over her, his heavy body shielding her from the falling ceiling tiles. His face was covered in soot, and blood trickled from a cut on his temple.
"I'm... I'm okay!" Tess gasped, her voice hoarse. "Pavel? Lev?"
"Pavel is outside!" Anton shouted, pulling her to her feet among the wreckage. "We need to move! The gas line is leaking—the whole place is going to blow!"
They scrambled over the burning remnants of the counter. The diner—the place Tess had sought shelter in, the place she had fought to protect—was completely engulfed in roaring red flames.
As they reached the shattered front entrance, a dark sedan screeched to a halt on the wet street outside.
The rear window rolled down, and Ivan Nikolai leaned out, holding a submachine gun. His burned hand was wrapped in thick white bandages, his eyes wild with unhinged madness.
"You thought you won, Old Man!" Ivan screamed maniacally toward the burning building, aiming his weapon straight at Tess and Anton as they stumbled onto the sidewalk. "If I can't have this city, nobody gets it!"
Ivan pulled the trigger.
Bullets sprayed across the pavement, spark-striking the wet asphalt. Anton threw himself in front of Tess, taking two heavy rounds to his tactical vest and grunting as he fell to his knees.
Tess screamed, reaching for Anton, but Ivan raised his weapon again, aiming directly at her chest.
BANG! BANG!
Two crisp, sharp gunshots echoed through the foggy street—not from Ivan’s weapon, but from down the block.
Ivan’s head snapped back as two bullet holes appeared precisely in the center of his forehead. His eyes rolled back, and he slumped lifelessly over the frame of the car door. The submachine gun dropped onto the street with a heavy metallic clatter.
Tess turned around, her heart pounding frantically against her ribs.
Standing fifty yards away in the pouring rain was Leo.
He wore his heavy tweed coat and flat cap, holding a sleek, silver vintage revolver in his right hand. Smoke curled gently from the barrel into the damp air. His cloudy eyes were dead silent, his stance completely unwavering.
Behind him, three black SUVs pulled up, Viktor and a dozen fully armed operatives spilling out to secure the perimeter.
Leo lowered the revolver, walked slowly through the rain, and stopped in front of Tess.
"Are you hurt, my dear?" Leo asked softly, his voice trembling slightly with suppressed emotion.
May you like
Tess looked at the burning diner, then at Ivan’s lifeless body, and finally at the old man who had risked everything to reach her.
"I'm okay, Leo," Tess whispered, tears cutting clean tracks through the soot on her face. "I'm okay."
