Chapter 2 - The Groom's Shadow
I threw my entire body weight against the heavy oak door just as Julian pushed it from the outside.
The velvet ottoman skidded backward on the polished tiles, squeaking loudly against the marble.
"Go away!" I screamed, pressing my bleeding palms against the cold wood.
"You really should not exert yourself in your condition, Claire," Julian mocked softly through the crack in the doorway.
"Just pass your encrypted phone out to me, and I will gladly let the paramedics inside."
I looked down at the emergency device in my hand, knowing it was the only lifeline keeping me and my baby alive.
"Mara," I whispered into the receiver.
"The groom is at the door, and he is trying to break in."
Mara cursed violently under her breath.
"Claire, I just got a radio update from the ground team," she said, her voice tight with rage.
"The local police chief is on the syndicate's payroll, and his cruisers have formed a barricade at the vineyard gates to block our ambulances."
My chest tightened as a suffocating wave of despair crashed over me.
I was completely cut off from the outside world, trapped in a remote vineyard surrounded by heavily armed criminals.
Another brutal contraction seized my body, causing my vision to blur and my knees to buckle.
I slid down the back of the door, completely unable to hold it shut any longer.
The door violently swung open, knocking the ottoman aside with a heavy thud.
Julian stepped into the bridal bathroom, wearing an immaculate white tuxedo that starkly contrasted with the criminal empire he ran.
He looked down at my soaked, blood-stained dress with an expression of profound disgust.
Behind him, two massive men in tailored security suits stepped into the hallway, blocking any chance of escape.
May you like
"Take her phone," Julian ordered his men, adjusting his expensive silk tie.
Before the men could cross the threshold, the deafening sound of shattering glass echoed from the main ballroom.
