Chapter 2 - The Traitor's Mark
Julian did not hesitate for a single second when he saw his own family crest on the attackers.
He returned fire with terrifying precision, dropping two of the mercenaries immediately.
His personal bodyguards swarmed the garage, laying down heavy covering fire.
The sound of bullets impacting the armored SUV was absolutely deafening.
I covered Ivy and Toby with my own body, praying the reinforced steel would hold.
Julian yanked the driver's side door open and pulled his wounded driver out.
He jumped behind the steering wheel and shifted the massive vehicle into reverse.
Tires screamed against the polished concrete as we accelerated backward toward the emergency exit.
A mercenary stepped into our path with a heavy shotgun raised to his shoulder.
Julian did not even tap the brakes as the SUV slammed into the man.
We burst through the heavy wooden exit doors and sped out into the rainy Manhattan streets.
I checked the children and breathed a massive sigh of relief when I saw they were unhurt.
Julian drove recklessly through the city, constantly checking his rearview mirror.
He asked me if everyone in the back seat was completely safe.
I told him we were alive, but Ivy was crying hysterically.
Toby remained perfectly silent, clutching his stuffed dog with white knuckles.
Julian navigated the vehicle down a dark, abandoned alleyway in Queens.
He pulled into a hidden underground bunker that served as one of his emergency safehouses.
We hurried out of the ruined SUV and into the heavily fortified concrete room.
Julian immediately began locking down the heavy steel blast doors.
I demanded to know why his own men were trying to kill a child.
Julian paced the floor like a caged predator, his eyes burning with absolute rage.
He explained that someone high up in his organization wanted the Hail bloodline extinguished forever.
He walked over to a metal table and dropped a silver coin he had stripped from one of the dead attackers.
I looked closely at the coin and noticed a specific, deep scratch across the surface.
I told Julian that I had seen his underboss, Marcus, playing with that exact coin yesterday.
Julian stared at the coin, realizing his oldest and most trusted friend was the traitor.
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Suddenly, Toby pulled a small, blinking device out from inside his stuffed dog's collar.
The six-year-old boy looked at Julian and asked why his toy was making a strange beeping noise.
