Chapter 7 - The Flashbang
The high-pitched whine reached a deafening frequency before the cylinder exploded with an agonizingly bright flash of white light.
The military-grade flashbang temporarily blinded everyone on the highway, accompanied by a concussive boom that shattered my eardrums.
I had squeezed my eyes shut the exact moment I saw the object drop, a desperate instinct that ultimately saved my vision.
Falcone shrieked in absolute agony, dropping his silver revolver and clutching his burning eyes.
In the momentary, chaotic blindness, Lorenzo moved with terrifying, predatory speed despite his severe injuries.
He lunged forward, snatching Leo safely from Falcone’s loosened grip and tossing the baby directly into my waiting arms.
I caught Leo against my chest, immediately turning my back to shield him from the violent carnage erupting behind me.
Lorenzo drew a hidden combat knife and drove it mercilessly into Don Falcone’s chest, ending the rival boss's life in one swift motion.
Marcus rubbed his watering eyes, wildly swinging his heavy shotgun in a desperate attempt to find a target.
He fired a massive, blind shot that blew a massive hole through the door of the wrecked SUV.
I ducked behind the concrete guardrail, holding my breath as Marcus reloaded his weapon for a second shot.
Lorenzo pulled Falcone’s silver revolver from the wet asphalt and aimed it squarely at Marcus’s chest.
"This is for the child she lost," Lorenzo declared coldly, his voice cutting through the pouring rain.
He pulled the trigger three times, the deafening shots echoing across the empty highway as Marcus collapsed permanently to the ground.
The silence that followed was heavy and absolute, broken only by the sound of the rain and Leo’s soft whimpering.
Lorenzo dropped the gun, his adrenaline finally fading as he fell heavily to his knees on the wet pavement.
I rushed to his side, using all of my strength to keep the massive mafia boss from completely bleeding out.
Within minutes, the wailing sirens of Lorenzo's loyal reinforcements and private medical teams pierced the night air.
Dozens of armored vehicles surrounded us, securing the perimeter and immediately loading Lorenzo onto a trauma stretcher.
A medic threw a warm, thermal blanket over my shivering shoulders, gently checking Leo for any signs of injury.
The baby was perfectly safe, completely unharmed by the absolute nightmare we had just survived.
As I sat in the back of the armored ambulance, Lorenzo reached out weakly and grasped my trembling hand.
"You saved my son, Elena, and I will spend the rest of my life protecting you," he whispered before slipping into unconsciousness.
May you like
I held his hand tightly against my cheek, finally allowing myself to believe that my life of running was over.
But as the ambulance sped toward the private hospital, a heavily encrypted phone in Falcone's pocket began to ring violently on the highway behind us.
