Chapter 3 - The Descent
The blast wave threw Tessa backward.
She would have hit the marble stairs if Leo had not wrapped his body around hers.
They crashed to the floor together in a shower of shattered glass and burning debris.
Tessa screamed as the deafening sound of automatic gunfire erupted from the front lawn.
Leo dragged her to her feet, shielding her with his broad shoulders.
“Move!”
He pushed her toward the hallway leading to the library.
Bullets tore through the expensive oil paintings and shattered the crystal chandeliers above them.
Tessa kicked off her heels, running barefoot across the glass-strewn hardwood.
Luca and three other guards returned fire from the top of the stairs, buying them precious seconds.
Leo shoved Tessa into the dark library and slammed the heavy doors shut.
He rushed to the grand fireplace and pressed a hidden mechanism beneath the mantle.
A section of the mahogany bookshelves slid open, revealing a steel elevator door.
“Get in.”
Tessa stumbled into the small, claustrophobic space.
Leo followed her, slamming his hand against the emergency descent button.
The doors slid shut just as the library doors were kicked open.
The elevator lurched downward, plunging them into absolute darkness.
Tessa was gasping for air, her heart hammering wildly against her ribs.
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Then she felt something warm and wet dripping onto her bare shoulder.
She reached out in the pitch black and realized Leo’s white shirt was completely soaked in blood.
