Chapter 5 - The Heir Apparent
The silence in the ruined bedroom was heavier than the thick smoke filling the air.
Damon stared at Zuri, searching her small, terrified face for the truth.
He saw the familiar shape of his own jawline and the exact dark curl of his own hair.
A fierce, primal instinct suddenly awakened inside Damon's chest, washing away three years of hollow grief.
He was a father.
"If you hurt my daughter, I will hunt you to the ends of the earth," Damon swore with a demonic intensity.
Trent just laughed and signaled his armed mercenaries to step closer.
"That is exactly why you are going to transfer one hundred million dollars into my offshore account right now," Trent demanded.
Naomi clutched Zuri so tightly her knuckles turned entirely white.
"You are a monster, Trent," she cried out through her tears.
"I am a businessman," Trent corrected sharply.
Damon slowly walked backward toward his heavy mahogany desk.
"I need my laptop to authorize a transfer of that size," Damon lied smoothly.
"Do it slowly, billionaire," Trent warned, keeping his gun trained on Naomi.
Damon reached the desk and flipped open the silver laptop.
His fingers danced quickly across the keyboard, but he was not logging into his bank account.
He was accessing the mansion's experimental defense grid that he had installed after Elena's death.
"Transfer is pending, I just need your account routing number," Damon said calmly.
Trent lowered his weapon slightly and pulled a piece of folded paper from his pocket.
That single moment of distraction was all Damon needed.
Damon slammed his fist down on the Enter key, activating the room's high-pressure fire suppression system.
Thick, blinding foam sprayed violently from the ceiling vents, completely obscuring everyone's vision instantly.
Damon lunged across the slippery floor in the absolute chaos and tackled Trent to the ground.
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A stray gunshot echoed through the foam-filled room, completely deafening everyone in the confined space.
Naomi screamed into the white void, having absolutely no idea who had just been shot.
