Chapter 6 - The Blood Debt
Dominic slowly lowered his weapon and set it carefully on the damp concrete floor.
Silas snapped his fingers, and one of the armed guards kicked the gun far away into the darkness.
Norah held Lily tightly, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird.
"You killed Valerie," Dominic stated, his voice completely hollow and devoid of surprise.
Silas chuckled, walking around the prisoners like a predator inspecting a guaranteed meal.
"She was so incredibly easy to manipulate, Dom."
"I simply told her I had photographic proof you were cheating on her."
"When she opened the door to her penthouse, she was expecting a terrified mistress, not a ghost."
Silas stopped right in front of Norah and tilted his head curiously.
"And you."
"You gave me the greatest gift of all when you humiliated her at the restaurant."
"You handed me the perfect, believable murder suspect on a silver platter."
Norah glared at the scarred man, stubbornly refusing to look away or show fear.
"Why go through all this elaborate trouble?" she demanded angrily.
"Why frame me just to start a war with the Senator?"
Silas looked at his brother with pure, unadulterated hatred burning in his eyes.
"Because five years ago, Dominic made a secret deal with the Whitmore family to expand his empire."
"The Senator demanded a major show of good faith to secure the new alliance."
"He demanded a literal blood sacrifice from the Mercer family to prove our absolute loyalty."
Silas pulled his collar down, revealing a massive cluster of ugly bullet scars across his collarbone.
"Dominic shot me in the chest and dumped me in the river just to get his shipping ports."
Norah gasped, looking at Dominic in absolute horror.
Dominic did not attempt to defend himself.
He stared blankly at the floor, his face pale and completely unreadable.
"I did what was strictly necessary for the survival of the family," Dominic whispered.
"You did what was necessary for you!" Silas roared, his calm facade finally shattering completely.
He pulled a polished silver revolver from his waistband and aimed it directly at Dominic's head.
"And now I am going to take everything you built, just like you took my life."
Silas cocked the heavy hammer of the gun.
"Say goodbye, brother."
Norah didn't take time to think.
She didn't formulate a plan.
She simply grabbed a heavy iron crowbar resting against a nearby wooden shipping crate.
She swung it with all her remaining strength, smashing it directly into the side of Silas's knee.
A sickening crunch echoed loudly through the entire basement.
Silas screamed, the revolver discharging wildly into the ceiling as he collapsed to the floor in agony.
Dominic moved with terrifying, practiced speed.
He tackled the closest guard, snapping the man's wrist and stealing his rifle in one fluid, violent motion.
Gunfire erupted instantly in the confined space, deafening and totally chaotic.
Dominic laid down a massive barrage of covering fire to keep the other guards pinned.
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"Run!" Dominic shouted at Norah over the deafening noise.
Norah grabbed Lily's hand and bolted blindly back into the dark labyrinth of wooden crates.
