Chapter 8 - The Price of Truth
Cornered, exposed, and facing total ruin, Victor lost his sanity. He pulled a concealed revolver from his jacket lining and aimed it directly at my head.
"If I lose everything today, you lose the girl!" Victor screamed, his eyes wild with desperation.
Before he could pull the trigger, Damian stepped directly into the line of fire, shielding Leah and me with his own body.
BANG.
A deafening gunshot shattered the glass room. The bullet struck Damian in the upper right chest. Blood splattered across the shiny floor, but he didn't fall. With sheer, terrifying willpower, Damian roared, closed the distance between them, and tackled Victor over the massive glass conference table.
The glass shattered into a million pieces as both men crashed onto the floor. Damian disarmed Victor with his bare hands, breaking the man's wrist with a sickening crack, and pinned him to the ground just as the heavy glass doors shattered from the outside.
Federal agents and tactical officers swarmed the room, weapons raised, shouting commands. Damian had leaked the evidence to the authorities hours earlier, ensuring Victor's syndicate faction would be dismantled permanently.
"Drop your weapon!" an agent yelled.
Damian rolled off Victor, laying flat on his back, his chest rising and falling rapidly as blood pooled beneath him. I dropped to my knees beside him, pressing my hands frantically against his chest wound to stop the flow.
"Damian! Stay with me! Look at me!" I sobbed, tears blurring my vision.
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Leah crawled out from behind the desk, reaching her tiny hand toward Damian's pale face. Her small voice trembled, loud and clear above the chaos of shouting police officers: "Dada! Dada, don't go!"
Hearing her call him father for the very first time, Damian let out a faint, painful breath. He reached up with a blood-stained hand, gently touching my cheek. "Save me, Elena..." he whispered, before his eyes rolled back and he went completely limp.
