Chapter 7 - The Reckoning of Boston
The silence was worse than the noise.
Claire sat against the panic room wall, her arms trembling as she held Lily, listening for any sign of movement outside the heavy steel door.
Click.
The electronic lock chimed. The red security light turned green.
Slowly, the heavy door swung open.
Adrian stood on the threshold.
He looked like a man who had walked through the gates of hell and conquered it. His dark suit was ruined, covered in soot, rain, and blood. He held his weapon at his side, his face pale, his breath ragged.
Behind him, Dominic and three surviving guards stood in the ruined hallway, securing the floor.
Adrian’s eyes scanned the dark panic room until they landed on Claire and Lily sitting together on the carpet.
The weapon dropped from his hand, clattering onto the floor.
“Daddy!” Lily shrieked, scrambling out of Claire’s arms and running toward him.
Adrian dropped to his knees, catching his daughter in a tight, desperate embrace, burying his face in her hair. “Lily... my sweet girl...”
Claire stood up slowly, her knees shaking, her body exhausted beyond measure. She leaned against the wall for support, watching the father and daughter hold each other.
Adrian raised his head. His dark eyes locked onto Claire.
He stood up, walking across the room in three heavy strides. Without a word, he pulled Claire into his arms, wrapping his massive frame around her, pulling her so close she could feel the violent tremor running through his muscular body.
“You saved her,” Adrian rasped against her hair, his voice thick with uncharacteristic tears. “The guard at the stairs... Dominic told me what you did.”
“I protected our girl,” Claire whispered, burying her face in his blood-stained lapel.
“O’Connor is dead,” Adrian revealed quietly, his voice dropping into an absolute, cold finality. “His syndicate is gone. The city is clean, Claire. No one will ever threaten this house again.”
He pulled back, framing her soft, lovely face with his large, calloused hands.
“I’m done hiding in the shadows,” Adrian said, looking into her warm brown eyes with infinite tenderness. “Tomorrow, I’m announcing our engagement to the board.”
May you like
Claire gasped softly. “Adrian... your board... society—”
“Let them talk,” Adrian interrupted, his lips curving into a rare, brilliant smile that transformed his harsh face into something impossibly handsome. “Let them say the feared boss of Boston was brought to his knees by a nanny from Ohio. They’d be right.”
